HUNDREDS of food items have been gathered in what could easily be Worcester's largest food hamper.

Butcher, Checketts of Ombersley, held a Christmas Market on Sunday and invited visitors to donate to their collection for Worcester and Droitwich food banks, all gathered in a hot air balloon basket.

Rachel Checketts, manager of Checketts, said they had a "fantastic turn out".

"More than 1,000 people attended the market and we collected about 500kilos of food in what is surely the largest hamper in Worcester. We were kindly allowed to borrow the basket from the Co-operative Funeralcare in Worcester," Mrs Checketts said.

"So many people said what a great idea it was and the food banks were hugely appreciative. It's nice to think that we could make a difference to some people who would not necessarily have been sitting down to a meal this Christmas. We would definitely do this again as the response completely exceeded our expectations, it was wonderful."