A prominent Huddersfield charity has assured residents that its door-to-door collectors are legitimate.

Kirkwood Hospice has apologised after an elderly woman in Reinwood complained about being solicited by two men canvassing for the hospice’s lottery.

The woman said she was “perturbed” to be asked for her bank details amid a climate of scam warnings from the authorities.

But the Dalton based hospice says the collectors only take direct debit details, which cannot be used to fraudulently take money.

Hospice spokesman, Jim Coward, said they were sorry for any upset caused but said face-to-face collections were the best way of engaging with the public.

He said: “We have sub-contracted canvassers and on that particular occasion someone was being trained.

“We would normally only send one person as it can be intimidating when it’s more than one.

“We don’t think it’s appropriate for two people to appear at the door and we will contact the company to ask that it doesn’t happen in the future.”

Mr Coward said the charity, which provides end-of-life care to terminally ill adults, only canvassed for its lottery, where there was a £1,000 worth of cash prizes, and not its Friends of Kirkwood monthly donation plan.

He added: “We think face-to-face is the best way of promoting the lottery and getting some support for the hospice as it only costs £1 a week.

“The staff have full training and they’re approved by the gambling commission – it’s all above board.

“We would never push somebody into giving their details and all staff have photo badges.

“They don’t take cash and they’re trained to give information but not hassle, cajole or be pushy.

“A lot of other charities, including Forget-me-not Children’s Hospice and Macmillan Cancer do door-to-door collections.

“The reason for that is it’s a way for us to speak to people and tell them about the work we do.

“But we would never make someone feel uncomfortable and we can only apologise if that has happened.

“If anyone does feel uncomfortable handing over their details on the doorstep, but is interested in joining the Kirkwood Hospice Lottery, they can find out more and sign up online at www.kirkwoodhospice.co.uk/fundraising/lottery or call us on 01484 557913.

“Alternatively they can take the information from the canvasser and post back the forms directly to the Hospice.”

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