THE theft of charity bags by brazen thieves is becoming more commonplace in Evesham, says a shop manager who has noticed an upsurge in the crime in recent weeks.

Julie Beasley runs the Daisychain Benevolent Fund shop on Bridge Street and says that bags and other donated items left on the doorstep of the shop outside opening hours, are being stolen before staff can pick them up.

“It has happened on the odd occasion in the past, but is certainly more prolific now. It is much more noticable. People have come into the shop asking if we received their items left overnight or at the weekend, and we have to say we didn’t.

“They leave items outside when we are closed as we can only accept items when the shop is open, but they are gone before we can get to them,” she said.

Mrs Beasley cited one recent case where a regular donor to the charity left three bags of high quality clothing outside.

However, when she came into the shop a couple of days later to check if it had been received, staff told her they knew nothing about it. A child’s ridealong toy is also believed to have been stolen in recent days.

Daisychain Benevolent Fund raises money for the Midlands Air Ambulance – a charity which relies solely on donations to continue its life-saving work.

The shop manager added: “Anyone stealing these donations should think about what it would be like for them or a family member to be in a serious accident and the air ambulance was not on hand to save them. It is a vital, life-saving service and needs support to carry on.”

Anyone witnessing thefts from the charity shop is urged to call police on 0300 3333000.