AN online fund has been set up to help with search efforts to find missing Stourbridge man Matthew Gill.

Matthew, known as Liggy, has now been missing for a week – since Friday October 6.

Meanwhile – the 43-year-old’s car, a silver Smart Roadster Brabus, has been found parked on the car park at Petzone at Prestwood, off the A449.

West Midlands Police and volunteers from Severn Area Search and Rescue Association have been searching nearby Millions Wood this week and parts of Kinver Edge on Friday.

While friends, family and total strangers have also been joining in the search efforts as well as putting up posters urging anyone who thinks they might have seen Mathew to get in touch.

A Find Liggy Facebook group has also been set up for people to share information – and now Matthew’s brother Andrew Gill has started a crowdfunding appeal to help raise money towards the search and rescue effort.

He said: “Every single penny will go towards the search and rescue effort - then donated to a charity like the air ambulance or some search and rescue charity.”

Matthew, who left home without his wallet, has not turned up for work or contacted his partner and his phone has been switched off.

Police say there was a reported sighting of him walking on the A449 at Wall Heath and they are keen to hear from anyone else who may have seen him on the stretch of road between The Stewponey and Swindon Road junctions between 10.45am and 11.30am on Friday October 6.

They are particularly keen to hear from motorists who were travelling that route and may have dash cam footage around that time.

PC Shaun Thomas, from the force’s Locate team, said: “This is completely out of character for Matthew and we are appealing for anyone who may have seen him to come forward.

"We are trying to piece together where Matthew went that day as we continue to locate his whereabouts."

People living in the Wall Heath, Kinver and Stourton areas are also urged to check CCTV footage on their homes to see if they have picked up any sitings of Matthew, who is described as white, 5ft 10ins tall, medium build, clean shaven with short cropped hair and who may have been wearing a white baseball cap, tracksuit bottoms and grey slip on trainers at the time of his disappearance.

Friend Stuart Jessup, who has been helping with the search for Matthew, praised the efforts of all those trying to help to find him.

He said: “It’s remarkable the amount of people that have turned up to help.”

He said posters have been put up as far away as Shrewsbury and he added: “Taxi drivers have been giving them out to their drivers, printing companies have done around 5,000 copies free of charge. The Fox pub at Stourton and The Britannia in Wollaston have put on food for people. And people who don’t even know Matt have turned out to help. It’s phenomenal.”

At the time of publishing this article, he said friends and relatives were co-ordinating where next to concentrate search efforts and he added: “We’re going to move from Millions Wood to Enville and some of the surrounding areas.”

People can keep up-to-date with the search on Facebook site Find Liggy.

To make a donation towards the search and rescue efforts go to www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/andrew-gill-1.

Anyone with information about Matthew's whereabouts is asked to urgently contact the Locate team on 101, extension 872 3053.