JOURNAL fundraisers have increased the newspaper's St Richard's New Hospice Appeal fund by nearly 10 per cent in recent weeks.

The fundraising total now stands at £3,306.28 thanks to the help of kind-hearted Vale readers organising charity events and making one-off donations. The Journal aiming to raise £25,000 towards the construction of a state of the art hospice in Worcester.

A group of Vale churchgoers brewed up the latest donation after organising a coffee morning in aid of the appeal. The volunteers from St Barbara's church in Ashton-under-Hill showed their support for St Richard's by raising an impressive £305 at last Wednesday's fundraiser.

Organiser Alex Dodge said: "The hospice is a wonderful movement and it touches so many peoples' lives. The appeal to build the new hospice is admirable because it is very much needed for the area. We are very happy to support St Richard's in any way we can."

The new £5.25m hospice is due to open in May 2006 and will provide an extra 15 palliative care beds for South Worcestershire. Currently the only five beds available in the area are at Evesham Community Hospital's Macmillan ward.

A team of professionals and volunteers help run the Evesham ward, and the group is holding a special coffee and cake get-together to recruit more helpers. Ward sister Tess Barley said: "We want to remind people that we are still here and would like some more volunteers for the unit.

"In particular we are looking for people who can help out in our garden and we always need people who are able to do clerical or reception work. We would also like to hear from people with skills like hairdressing or massage - it all make such a difference to the patients that we care for."

The get-together will take place in the hospital canteen from 2pm to 4pm next Saturday, September 25.

Have you got a fund-raising event for the St Richard's Appeal? Contact Claire Charles on 01386 765678