Scunthorpe: Thousands raised after heatwave melts shop's chocolate stock

Claire York launched an online appeal to help replace her parents' melted chocolate

A grateful shop owner was reduced to tears after nearly £4,000 was raised to replace her stock of chocolate which melted in the recent heatwave.

Ellis Stores in Scunthorpe lost about £1,000 worth of confectionery after its air conditioning struggled to cope.

The fundraiser was started by Claire York, the daughter of the shop's owners, Stephen and Linda Ellis.

Ms York said they were "overwhelmed" by the response and "the kindness of people left my mum in tears".

The fundraiser, which had an initial target of £500, stood at £3,727 on Thursday.

It has attracted donations from people all over the country, including as far afield as Dorset and London.

People also left messages of support.

'Everyone is struggling'

"I've never visited your store or even been to Scunthorpe, but believe in helping anyone wherever I can. We're all neighbours in this world we share," one message read.

"Everyone is struggling at the moment, but there are still people out there who want to help - people who don't even know my parents," Ms York said.

"It puts your faith back in people," she added.

The shop lost about £1,000 worth of chocolate during the heatwave

The couple have run the independent shop on Cottage Beck Road for more than 24 years.

At the time of the incident, Ms York said: "My mum was literally ready to pack in, shut the door and just leave it all."

She said it had not been worth claiming on the insurance due to the excess and the likelihood of higher premiums in the future.

However, thanks to the generosity of people, she said her parents had been able to replace the lost stock and buy a secondary cooling machine.