St Helena Hospice: Hundreds of pounds stolen from Coggeshall shop

St Helena Hospice raises money for people facing incurable illness and bereavement

A charity shop has been left with a "daunting" repair bill after it was broken into and hundreds of pounds were stolen.

St Helena Hospice's shop in Coggeshall, Essex, was raided on Sunday after a crowbar was used to gain entry.

The charity, in Doubleday Corner, raises money for people facing incurable illness and bereavement.

The shop remained closed on Monday and its retail area manager Tim Morgan said staff were devastated.

"This theft has caused great heartache to our community, along with a large bill for the repairs that will be needed - money that would have been spent on supporting our patients and their families," he said.

'Shocked'

Mr Morgan said hospices across the UK are facing a crisis brought on by rising energy, food and staff costs.

"Expenses like this break-in are the last thing we needed when we are facing this crisis," he said.

The manager thanked staff and volunteers for their "resilience and determination," and added the incident had caused "shock and upset".

The police were called to the shop on Monday after a member of staff arrived at 08:45 GMT to find entry had been forced and a safe containing a "three-figure sum of cash" stolen.

Officers discovered the premises had suffered "significant" damage during the break-in.

An Essex Police spokesman said its officers were investigating the incident.

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