Volunteers who run a charity shop in Pill which raises thousands of pounds for the village's medical surgery have issued a desperate plea to their customers – use us or lose us.

The Cheer charity shop in the precinct has been running since 1996 to raise cash for equipment for the Heywood Family Practice in the village.

Julie Allen, 49, and Anne Murawa, 65, who used to work at the shop as volunteers when it first opened, took over the management of the shop six years ago.

Since they took it over, with the help of a team of dedicated volunteers, they have raised £50,000 for the surgery, buying items such as heart monitors and paying for a counsellor.

They have also brought computer equipment for the surgery and equipment for the district nursing team.

But the pair say, as a result of the recession, the number of items they get given to sell in the store and the number of customers has fallen, and their revenues have plummeted by 50 per cent.

They have now been forced to put a sign in the window urging their customers to "use us or lose us".

Julie said: "It costs us around £1,000 a month in rent, business rates and heating and lighting costs just to keep the shop open.

"On top of that we try to raise as much money as we possibly can for the village surgery and over the years have paid for a number of essential items, such as blood pressure monitors and heart monitors.

"But since last Christmas we have seen the amount of items we are given to sell drop substantially and, as a result, the number of people coming into the store has also fallen.

"We think this is as a result of the recession because people do not have the money to spend and are hanging onto their old items rather than giving them away and buying new ones.

"We do get given some lovely items and are a lot cheaper than other charity shops, especially for childrens' clothes and books.

"We were forced to put up the sign in the window to get the message home to local people that they need to use the shop or there is the possibility it could close.

"Not only do we raise money for the surgery, but we also provide a valuable service to the local community."

The shop opens Tuesday to Friday from 9.30am to 4pm and on Saturdays from 9.30am to 1pm.

Anyone who has goods to donate can take them to the shop during opening hours or call 01275 374929.