PENDLESIDE Hospice could miss out on vital funds if a new volunteer to collect lottery money is not found.

Villagers taking part in the lottery have been able to pay their £4-a-month subscription fee at the newsagents, in Brownside Road, but the shop is due to close for good this Saturday and no alternative has yet been found.

Around 20 people currently pay their money at the paper shop and if they can no longer take part the hospice could lose out on £1,000.

John Binks, head of fundraising at the hospice, based in Colne Road, Reedley, said: "People there are used to going to the shop to pay their lottery money because it is easy and convenient for them.

"We are now appealing for someone to volunteer as a collector for us.

"It would just take a couple of hours every two weeks. Clearly we can't afford to lose these significant slices of income." It costs around £1.4m-a-year to run the hospice and the contribution from the Primary Care Trust amounts to only £300,000, so more than £1m has to be brought in through fundraising. In the last financial year the lottery had contributed around £150,000 to that total.

John said he was confident that someone from Worsthorne would come forward and volunteer to take on the collection.

He said: "The people of Worsthorne have had a very long and positive history in supporting the hospice, both financially and as volunteers. If someone could step into the breach and act as local collector it would be brilliant."

Anyone who would like to volunteer can contact John Binks on 01282 440128 or the lottery office on 01282 440129.