AS a Marlow institution celebrates its 100th birthday this year, a firm of solicitors have raised over £6000 towards its upkeep after agreeing to waive their legal fees to raise money for the charity responsible for looking after it.

It is a century since Riley Park was given in trust to the Marlow community by Edward Riley, largely as a place for children to play away from the dangers of the streets.

To mark the occasion, Gabbitas Robins, based in the town, launched the "Riley Park Trust Will Scheme" to lend support to the trust, which relies on charitable contributions for its income.

The West Street firm has a personal connection to the park, known to generations of Marlovians as 'The Rec', with partner Stephen Robins acting as a park trustee.

The scheme, spearheaded by solicitor James Moore, saw the legal eagles draft wills for residents throughout March, waiving their legal fees and asking that clients make a contribution to the charity instead.

Solicitor Mr Moore said: "We were delighted to support a local charity here in Marlow.

"The trustees of the charity work very hard to ensure that Riley Park is maintained to a high standard and can continue to be used as a playground, sports field and park area for local residents.

"Making a Will is very important and we were pleased to benefit both the residents in and around the Marlow area by drafting their Wills, whilst also benefitting Riley Park Trust."

Today, Riley Park Trust continues to act as the centre of the community, providing a spot for football clubs and other organisations to meet.

Run by a team of volunteer Trustees, the park has avoided insolvency in recent years to raise more than a quarter of a million pounds for regeneration and investment in the Trust.

This allowed for the replacement of perimeter fencing, regeneration of the children’s play area and an increase in planting and landscaping.