A GROUP of hardy fundraisers have just handed £7,700 to Kirkwood Hospice.

And it takes their total cash support for the Dalton hospice to a staggering £138,000 in a little over 12 years.

The money has been raised by the Marsh, Edgerton and Gledholt Support Group.

Mr Robert Hawkins, one of the founder members, said: "We started some 18 months before the hospice actually opened, when there was an appeal to help fund it. It snowballed from there.

"We set ourselves a target of raising about £3,000 a year, but we have actually managed to get three times that every year.

"There's no great secret to raising money for charity. The best advice is to do things you enjoy. I enjoy food and travel, so a lot of our events have involved eating meals or enjoying trips away.

"It has got harder because most of us are getting a litle long in the tooth.

"We have plenty of members in the group, but not so many active ones. But we are deterined to carry on for a little while longer," added Mr Hawkins.