Hospice charity opens shop to serve community

A Guernsey charity has opened a new retail premises, despite growing pressures on brick and mortor stores.

Les Bourgs Hospice opened the new charity shop in Guernsey at Oatlands village on Wednesday.

Ceo of the Hospice, Rob Jones, said: "Our ethos has always been we've wanted to provide something for families and children... and when I saw the outland site come up I thought 'that's perfect'."

He added with the cost of living on the island the community would benefit from having "good value" and "the ability to recycle in the island".

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Les Bourgs Hospice was opened in Guernsey by Greville Mitchell and Lisa Mitchell in 1991 and earns revenue from its shops.

Jones said the charity shop would benefit them because it was a regular cash flow that could help with planning.

"When you get a legacy you don't know if it's coming in or not so you need a certain amount of income you can guarantee and then the rest of it you have to try and fundraise year on year," he said.

Danielle Bullock, Senior Retail Manager for the charity, said: "I just think offering something to the community in this kind of area was a no brainer really."

She said the last two or three years the costs have "gone up so much" and "I think anything that we can do to raise extra money" was valuable.

She added: "It's really good for the community as well, people are struggling for money so it's really nice to give people this."

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