Cancer treatment shuttlebus service saved

More than £9,000 has been raised to save the bus

A free bus service transporting Jersey cancer patients to University Hospital Southampton (UHS) has been saved from closure after a fundraising effort.

Wessex Cancer Support's Daisy Bus was used by patients travelling for treatment from the Isle of Wight and the Channel Islands and staying in hotels in Southampton.

The charity is not involved with the independent fundraiser and had previously said that funding from the States of Jersey had been withdrawn - meaning the service would end on 20 August.

Organisers of the fundraising, led by Isle of Wight residents, said they were "delighted" the bus would keep running over the next few weeks after more than £9,000 was raised.

In a statement on the campaign, organisers said: "We are delighted to announce that the cancer patient transport service in Southampton, previously delivered by the Daisy Bus, will continue uninterrupted over the next few weeks while we put plans in place for a permanent replacement service.

"This is thanks to the incredible generosity of islanders over the last few days."

Save The Daisy Bus Campaign chair Michèle Le Quesne Newton said bus service company Xelacoach, from Southampton, had been commissed to run the service.

"They've just been amazing," she added.

The Government of Jersey previously said it was withdrawing funding as falling numbers of patients from Jersey meant it was costing £60 per passenger journey - significantly more than a taxi fare.