Bury Hospice is fortunate to have such amazing support from the people of Bury – it is overwhelming to see how much effort people are prepared to put in to raise money or how much time they give up to make a difference.

That was illustrated perfectly with our Christmas tree collection service. A team of 36 dedicated volunteers, which included a group of ex-firefighters spent three days collecting 1,250 trees from doorsteps.

Collections took place across the BL0, BL8, BL9, M25, M26 and M45 postcode areas – and Ainsworth, Bradley Fold, Harwood and Bradshaw.

Old spruces and fir trees were taken to Ashley Edge Tree and Garden Services Ltd, where they were chipped during the collection and recycled - a much more eco-friendly solution than sending trees to landfill.

I would like thanks Bespoke Landscapes, Ashley Edge Gardening Services, Parcelfast, Lostock Installations, Senior Waste Removals, A&A Couriers, DD Exhibitions, Timothy’s NW, Manchester Safety Services, Amazon and our great team of staff and volunteers for their amazing work.

Since becoming chief executive last year, I have learned first-hand about the fantastic efforts put in by people of all ages to raise money for the hospice and every year our community generously chooses to support the hospice in a variety of ways.

These include donating to and buying from one of our hospice charity shops, supporting or organising an event, fundraising through challenges and others volunteer their time. If these people weren’t donating their time, support or money, Bury Hospice would not exist.

This year it will cost more than £3.4m to run the hospice and all of our services are free. As a charity we have to raise nearly £3m of this ourselves and it is the generosity of our community that helps us to continue providing care and support for people with life-limiting conditions and their families.

It is important to stress although this is a large amount of money, people should understand that no matter how small your donation, it makes a difference. A donation of just £10 could pay for a patient's evening meal, £25 a bereavement support session for a family, while £50 could pay for a home visit by our community outreach team and £150 could pay for a nurse for the day. It is a well-known cliché but every penny really does help.

If you would like to get involved and support the hospice, call the fundraising team on 0161 797 1748 or email fundraising@buryhospice.org.uk