St Giles Hospice is stealing a march on the major national retailers by introducing a charge for carrier bags at its network of shops.

The local charity is introducing a 5p charge for each carrier bag – with money raised helping to support its work caring for local people living with cancer and other serious illnesses.

The charge not only aims to raise money for the registered charity, but also cut the number of plastic bags ending up in landfill, which in 2007 averaged over 150 per person – or more than 10 billion bags each year in the UK.

The issue has been firmly in the public eye since the Chancellor used his spring budget to indicate he would be looking more closely at the issue, if the major retailers did not take steps to address it on their own.

Lynwen Truesdale, Director of St Giles Hospice Shops, explains: “Our shops are all about recycling and making use of people’s unwanted items, whether it’s clothing, books, CDs or homeware.

“As such it’s natural for us to want to encourage people to re-use their old carrier bags.

“We do understand that sometimes people will need to ask for a carrier bag, but by introducing a 5p charge from May 1, St Giles can remind people that there is a cost to the environment, and give customers the opportunity to contribute to a very good local cause.”

St Giles’ network of charity shops sells a wide range donated items alongside a small selection of new goods. Details of local stores can be found by clicking here.

St Giles Hospice Shops play a vital role in funding the care offered by the hospice at its facilities in Sutton Coldfield and Whittington between Lichfield and Tamworth, or in patients' own homes across the region.

The 14 shops are based in major towns throughout the hospice's patient catchment area, which ranges from Ashby de la Zouch and Atherstone in the east, to Cannock and Walsall in the west – and from Burton and Uttoxeter in the north, to Sutton Coldfield and Coleshill in the south.

The charity has specialist bookshops in Atherstone and in Mere Green, Sutton Coldfield and a warehouse offering a wide range of high-quality furniture at value-for-money prices is based in Shenstone, near Lichfield. A selection of furniture is also available at the Cannock and Wylde Green shops.

Last year the hospice shops raised a total of £526,000 – with every penny going towards caring for local people and supporting their families and carers.

St Giles spends over £5million every year providing its specialist services. With just a third of this funded by the Government, the registered charity relies heavily on the support of local people to enable its valuable work to continue.