RESIDENTS in Chester and Ellesmere Port who are not sure what to do with their real Christmas tree now the festive season is over are being offered a helping hand.

The Hospice of the Good Shepherd has options for collections from January 11 in return for a donation.

Last year the hospice collected over 1,000 real Christmas trees, raising over £10,000.

This year the hospice is making an appeal for local people to make a donation in return for the hospice collecting their real Christmas trees

Justin Caroe, community fundraiser, said: “Last year’s collection was a great success and this year we are hoping to collect around 2,000 trees.”

“We want as many people in Chester as possible to get their used Christmas tree collected by our team and to dig deep with their donations to support the hospice.”

If you or anybody you know has a real Christmas tree, visit www.charityxmastreecollection.com and register by Wednesday, January 8.

The Hospice of the Good Shepherd has helped thousands of local people with life limiting illnesses and relies on your donations and fundraising to continue to help even more people in the community.

Now in its 30th year the hospice has an annual running cost of £4.2 million where less than 25 per cent comes from government funding. The remaining income is generated through fundraising, donations, events and corporate partnerships.