SHOPPERS bagged themselves a bargain on Saturday as a vintage jumble sale in aid of raising money for Samaritans.

The fundraiser, held at the Swindon Citadel, was organised by Network Rail who alongside the British Transport Police, work in partnership with Samaritans to reduce suicides on the railways.

More than 11,000 rail staff have been trained by Samaritans to identify vulnerable people who might be considering suicide and proactively help them.

While the total raised on Saturday is still being counted, it is hoped that the jumble sale raised a couple of hundred pounds for Samaritans.

Lily Exton, community relations manager for Network Rail, said: “Network Rail is working tirelessly to deliver our Railway Upgrade Plan to benefit passengers across the country, but our work with the community is also vitally important to us.

“We already work in partnership with Samaritans to prevent suicide on the railways and we work quite closely with them to do a lot of training with our staff to spot the signs and hopefully stop someone.

“The drivers can be affected as well when they witness someone on the railway so Samaritans also run courses so that our staff can get the support they need as well.”

An array of classic men’s, women’s and childrenswear was on sale throughout the afternoon in the hall where the Salvation Army kindly provided refreshments. Shoppers were also able to get their hands on bric-a-brac.

Jodie Johnson, manager of the Samaritans charity shop in Curtis Street, said the charity is incredibly grateful to any donation.

She added: “Every little helps and this year we are celebrating our 50th year of Samaritans in the town.

“With our anniversary year we want to try and encouruage people to volunteer in the shop or even on the phone.

“Training is provided to everyone and one thing we try to tell people is that we never question someone’s choice.”

To volunteer with Samaritans, call 01793 526430.