A MELTHAM man has transformed redundant pallets into a summerhouse.

Now he’s in with a chance to win £1,000, which will he will donate to a local charity.

Dan Hughes, 36, dedicated most of his seven-day holiday from work to enter the Facebook ‘Ronseal I did it’ Summerhouse Competition.

And due to his dedication and help from friends and family, the mental health nurse has wowed competition judges with his construction and is down to the final 20..

But even if he is crowned the winner, he will not pocket a penny as he has pledged the £1,000 prize money to The Joseph Salmon Trust.

As well as wooden pallets, the doors to Meltham Surgery have been incorporated into the design, having been donated to the project.

Dan has forked out £120 for roofing and was given the pallets at a discount by Slaithwaite company Cheap as Skips.

Dan said: “The Joseph Salmon Trust is a fantastic cause. I went to school with Neil Salmon, who founded the charity and I have raised money for the charity on a number of occasions over the years.

“This was the first time I had turned my hand to a DIY challenge.

“Taking apart pallets isn’t the easiest job in the world – especially when manufacturers go a bit overboard with the nail gun.

“However despite splitting a fair few I managed to prise off a good amount of usable wood.

“I quickly learned that the trick to building with pallets is to use ones that are as uniform as possible.

“The other trick is to have the flexibility to let the pallets dictate the design of the project, rather than rigidly impose your own design on the pallets.”

He added:“I’m rather pleased with the project.

“I struggled for a catchy name for the summerhouse for a while, but then a friend suggested that with the jubilee I should give it a royal flavour and call it Buckingham Pallets.

“As far as I’m aware I’m the only one of the 19 contestants who’s planning on giving the prize money to charity if they win. The Joseph Salmon Trust is really important to me and I passionately believe in the good work they do to help people going through the worst pain imaginable.

“For it to win the money for the trust would be a fantastic bit of icing on the cake.”

To help Dan win the contest he is urging the Examiners’ readers to get behind him and vote online. People can vote daily via the links on his blog: http://cabbagedan.com

l The Joseph Salmon Trust was founded in 2005 in memory of the young boy who died in his sleep.

The charity’s aim is to provide financial assistance to bereaved parents in Huddersfield, Halifax and Mirfield.