AN appeal to spread some Easter cheer to worthy causes has led to more than 180 Easter Eggs being donated in Devizes.

Funeral director Paul McDonald of John Stuart, in The Brittox, Devizes, launched the appeal to help boost the spirits of individuals and families relying on Devizes Food Bank.

But thanks to the generosity of towns people the funeral director now has enough chocolate eggs to donate to the children’s wards of the Great Western Hospital in Swindon and Salisbury District Hospital.

Eggs of all shapes and sizes have been donated at the branch, in The Brittox, from bags of Mini Eggs to full-size boxed eggs.

Mr McDonald said: “It’s been fantastic to see so many people coming into the branch with donations and we’re truly grateful for their support. We spread the word on Facebook initially and we’re amazed at how many people shared the appeal with their friends and family.

“We’ve already seen how kind the residents of Devizes can be thanks to the wider food bank campaign we launched earlier this year. I’m pleased to say that this trend has continued and the chocolate eggs donated in the last few weeks will mean that there’ll be a lot more smiling faces this Easter.”

The funeral directors started collecting food donations for Devizes Food Bank before Christmas.

As well as Devizes the food bank covers the former Kennet area including Marlborough.

Figures out this week from The Trussel Trust showed there had been a significant rise in the number of users of food banks, including Devizes where useage has almost doubled. For the year ending March 2014 Devizes Food Bank fed 2,364 people, compared to 1,312 the year before.