LIONS Club members did their bit to help victims of the Boxing Day floods by donating 10 washing machines last week.

The Radcliffe and Whitefield Lions Club and the Peel branch successfully applied for a grant from Lions Clubs International to purchase the machines, which cost £175 each, from local firm CK Appliances.

After dropping off the machines at the donations hub in Bradley Fold last week, members are now hoping to secure another grant to purchase cookers for families trying to move back into their homes.

Radcliffe and Whitefield club secretary Bryan Holland said: "We got involved in the recovery efforts almost from the start, but because we had to wait for the grant application to be approved it has taken a little while to get the machines.

"I live 100 yards away from where some of the worst flooding was and I was really lucky to escape it. I could only watch on Boxing Day as the water was coming up and into other people's homes.

"We know that the volunteer centre would be after white goods because they are a tough thing for people to donate. Most of the time when you get a new washing machine or a fridge, your old one gets taken away. You don't have a spare one sitting around that you can donate.

"We are now starting to look for cookers that we can donate too and we are going to re-apply for another grant to buy a few.

"Some people will be going back into their houses now and will be in need of things like this. But for other people it will still be months before they can go home. It's is just devastating."

The flood support centre, located at the former Co-op bank in Blackburn Street, is open from 10am-4pm Monday to Saturday and can be contacted on 07938 563532 or 07938 562885.

The hub is currently in need of more volunteers to help with basic administration work, sorting and stacking donations, and other small tasks.