PICK-UPS and deliveries have become easier again for a Wilton charity that provides furniture and crockery to people in need.

The Burnbake Trust’s new van is already up and running thanks to some determined fundraising and a donation of £5,000 from the Salisbury City Almshouse and Welfare Charities.

The trust has shops and a warehouse and sells cut-price second-hand furniture and domestic items.

It provides help to people referred from GP surgeries, social services and women’s refuges, who need assistance to start life again.

Trust manager Rita Maple said the van was a replacement for one that had become too expensive to run and was in constant use.

The new one had cost £13,000 after part-exchanging the old one, so the almshouse charity donation had made a big difference.

She said: “It was wonderful. Without the money, it would have taken another three or four months to raise with book stalls, car boots and so on. The van is used four days a week for 50 weeks of the year, so it is vital as it is big enough for a three-piece suite and wardrobes. We do five or six pick-ups per day and two or three deliveries and in the current climate we are busier than ever. We get so many requests from people with nothing.”

The charity is currently short of clean bedding and towels for its starter packs, which include crockery and cutlery. It is also keen to recruit volunteers.

Anyone who can help should contact the trust at its office in North Street, Wilton on 01722 743727.