A shop in Toothill has agreed to send all the money it raises from selling 5p carrier bags to help victims of domestic abuse.

Proceeds from the One Stop shop will be donated to Women’s Aid, who run a safe, secure refuge for female victims of domestic violence and their children.

Sales assistant Sarah Farr, who helped to choose the charity, said: “I think a lot of women suffer in silence, so to have somewhere to go, and to have a charity with the support that Women’s Aid give, could make women speak out more.

“I’ve got a little bit of personal experience, but back when it happened to me, there wasn’t really anything around.

“I was made homeless by my ex-partner, with my three-year-old child, and I had to go to Swindon Borough Council.

“There weren’t really many places around, but a lot has changed since then. The charity is a lot more known now, and that’s why a lot of women can speak out and find the support they need.”

Karen Jacklin, who works in administration support for the charity, said: “Any donations like this are more than welcome. We really do appreciate all their help with this sort of thing.

“It’s nice that they thought about us, and contacted us with regard to that.

“It’ll help with funding trips for the children, and we are actually refurbishing the refuge at the minute. So everything else is toward the refurbishment and the kids’ trips.

“This is the first time we’ve ever done this, so we don’t have any records as such, but we’ve been told it can raise up to £1000. Obviously that would be amazing for us. All we know is that it’s going to help us tremendously.”