A TEAM of funeral co-ordinators from local branches of The Southern Co-operative Funeralcare joined forces to raise money for the Cardiac Unit at Bristol's Royal Hospital for Children.

Staff from Frome, Warminster and Westbury’s branches took it in turn to cycle 20 miles each to fund their team entrance fee for October’s eight hour Restrictive Cardiomyopathy (RCM) Spin-a-thon.

Collectively, the funeral homes needed to raise £40 to cover their entrance fee, with the additional funds they raised going to the Royal Hospital for Children.

Karen Coleman, from The Sothern Co-operative Funeralcare in Westbury, said: “Our spin-a-thon was fantastic.

“It was hard work, but certainly great practice for the big charity spin-a-thon in October.

“We were also really pleased with the support we received from our local community, we’ve managed to raise more than our initial target which is just brilliant.”

Jayne Keitch, from The Southern Co-operative Funeralcare in Frome, added: "The hospital delivers wonderful care to children in our region, so we were naturally very happy to get involved with October’s RCM Spin-a-thon in Bristol and show our appreciation for the hospital’s hard work.”

Mrs Coleman and Mrs Keitch were also joined by Tess Gibson and Mel Willoughby from The Southern Co-operative Funeralcare in Warminster, Tom Parfitt from The Southern Co-operative Funeralcare in Frome, and Paul Keitch – Jayne’s husband who helped cycle a few miles.

The RCM Spin-a-thon will take place on Saturday October 1 at Bristol’s Millennium Square. The eight hour cycle is hoping to raise a target of £12,000 for the Cardiac Unit (Ward 32).