Thousands of bottle tops collected to support Charlie Harris-Beard campaign (From Droitwich Advertiser)

Thousands of bottle tops collected to support Charlie Harris-Beard campaign

4:00pm Friday 22nd March 2013 in News

THOUSANDS of bottle tops have been collected in Droitwich Spa to support a campaign in memory of Charlie Harris-Beard.

The Kidderminster toddler lost his brave battle with leukaemia earlier this year.

His mum Fiona, who is from Droitwich, and dad Joe set up a group called Cords4Life to raise awareness of umbilical cord donations in the UK.

Now, campaigners have been appealing for people to make plastic bottle top donations so they can be melted down to raise funds towards the cause.

A Facebook group was set up more than five weeks ago and already has 13,000 members and has helped launch collections across the country.

Drop-off points have been set up at Droitwich Working Men's Club, WANDS Children's Centre, Droitwich Rugby Club, Julie’s Cafe at the Berry Hill Industrial Estate, The Pillar of Salt pub and Tesco Express.

Fran Kiely, who helped set up the collection group, said: “We are collecting any plastic lids off drinks, food, toiletries, and cleaning products and are now also collecting CD, DVD and VHS cases as well.

“We currently have over 13,000 members of the group and people collecting as far as the United States.

“Cords4Life was set up by Charlie’s parents to help promote awareness of umbilical cord donation in the UK, which can give stem cell treatments to people suffering from cancer and other life threatening illnesses.”

Anyone interested in backing the campaign can sign a petition at epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/45622 People who want to support the collections can contact Lorraine Hinton on 07849016422 or Kerry Maycroft on 07591421123.

A sorting day will now be held at Droitwich Working Men’s Club on Saturday, March 30 between 11am and 4pm.