VOLUNTEERS from a retail chain helped transform a garden for friends and relatives of patients at St Michael's Hospice.

Marks and Spencer volunteers from the Hereford branch spent a day sprucing up the grounds of the house which is next to the hospice in Bartestree.

The property is available free of charge to friends and relatives of those staying at St Michael’s, many travelling long distances without anywhere to stay after visiting their loved ones.

The house gives them their own space but is just yards from the hospice’s inpatient unit.

Steph Lawrence, Plan A Champion at M&S Hereford, said: “St Michael’s Hospice provides an incredible support system for local people facing very difficult circumstances, so we jumped at the opportunity to transform a derelict and unsafe garden into an oasis of calm, to help provide some comfort for those receiving end-of-life care and their families.”

The work by the volunteers is part of Marks & Spencer's commitment to support 1,000 communities across the UK, help 10 million people live happier, healthier lives and be a zero waste business.

This will see M&S colleagues dedicating one million hours of community volunteering by 2025, to support local initiatives and projects that really matter in the communities that M&S serves.

Paddy Nugent at St Michael’s Hospice, said: “The work that M&S is undertaking will be invaluable to many families at St Michael's. For patients who have loved ones living far away, having a place to stay when they visit which gives them time to take a breath and relax is priceless."