A CHARITY is encouraging people to take advantage of a special Christmas tree recycling service this year, which will not only help take away the headache of removing trees once the festivities are done, but will also raise money for people with cancer and other life-limiting illnesses.

National charity, JustHelping, is organising Christmas tree collections in local areas to raise money for charities including St Ann’s Hospice.

Trees will be collected by volunteers in lieu of a donation from the public, with a fifth of the total raised allocated to the organisation involved.

Clare Hinton, JustHelping’s chief executive, explained: “JustHelping brings communities together through volunteering and fundraising and we’re excited to see if we can raise even more money for local charities like St Ann’s this time around.

“We are collecting trees in parts of WA14 and WA15 on January 6 and 7 and people can sign up to book in to have theirs collected via our website. It’s a great way to support a local charity, and we take away the post-Christmas stress of clearing away the tree too. Everyone wins!”

For more details, or to book a tree collection, visit www.charityxmastreecollection.com

JustHelping was founded in Prestbury in 2012 through philanthropic support. More than £150,000 was raised from all the Christmas tree collections in 2017.

Eamonn O’Neal, Chief Executive of St Ann’s, said: “We’re really thankful to the team at JustHelping for raising funds for our patients in this way, and to local people who sign up for a tree collection and make a donation to the hospice too.

“As a charity, we simply can’t continue our work without the support of the local community, and this project is a great example of a team doing just that. Huge thanks from everyone at St Ann’s.”

For more details, or to book a tree collection, visit www.charityxmastreecollection.com