A CASH crisis is threatening the future of Chipping Norton's Volunteer Connection which has issued an SOS to the public so it can survive.

On Tuesday, the charity launched its SOS - Save Our Service - Campaign at the Lower Town Hall. Manager Moira Cross said: "We're rapidly approaching 2001 which is International Year of the Volunteer and yet we're being threatened with closure because of lack of funding."

Set up in 1990, Volunteer Connection aims to match up willing volunteers with people in the community who need help.

Mrs Cross said: "We provide a really vital support network for people who fall just outside the social services criteria."

Volunteers take elderly and disabled people shopping, befriend clients, do odd jobs and provide transport.

For most of its lifetime, the organisation, which costs about £30,000 a year to run, has been funded from a variety of sources including Oxfordshire County Council's social services.However, Mrs Cross said the latest county council contract had not been renewed.

Another source of funding since 1997, which also ended this year, was a Home Office "Make a Difference" grant for about £24,000, of which £3,000 was used to extend the charity's office at Highlands Day Centre.

Oxfordshire social services' Lorna Brown said the decision to stop funding Volunteer Connection followed discussions with the charity earlier this year.

She said it became apparent to the council during the talks that the loss of the charity's other sources of funding meant it would not be able to continue delivering the kind of services social services wanted and, as the council could not make up the difference, it decided not to renew the contract.

Volunteer Connection is trying to find new sources of income and is waiting to see if an application to the National Lottery is successful.It hopes its campaign, featuring posters and information packs delivered to houses, will raise awareness of its work.

While it wants to hear from anyone who can offer donations or sponsorship it also wants to hear from people who can offer practical help with fund-raising

Telephone 01608 641177.