HEREFORD Haven is celebrating the single biggest donation yet to the One in Eight campaign.

A whopping £13,111 from dad and daughter fundraisers The Merry Millers takes the appeal total tantalisingly close to £20,000 – raised in just under a month.

One in Eight now has £19,588 toward its £30,000 target

Ian Pugh and his daughter, Janey Cotton - known as The Merry Millers - dropped in to the Haven this week to drop off their cheque.

The money was raised by a farming themed black tie auction event at The Three Counties Hotel in Hereford, where lots included silage and bull semen.

Ian, a farmer from Allensmore, and Janey have organised the auction to raise funds for local charities for the last few years.

This time round they achieved their highest total ever – £26,222 – which was split between The Haven and Prostate Cancer UK.

Hereford Haven community fundraiser, Lesley Leach, said: “We were absolutely thrilled with the money received from The Merry Millers – it costs approximately £1,000 per person that goes through our breast cancer support programme, so the money raised at the auction will make an enormous difference to the lives of people going through possibly the most frightening time of their life, and we are so grateful to them for that.

“Thank you to all sponsors and supporters and the Millers main sponsors, Wye Valley Group, and to Martyn Evans, the auctioneer on the evening.”

The Hereford Times launched One in Eight to raise £30,000 for a new specialist nurse for The Haven.

That sum covers the the cost of a nurse for a year, with the Haven confident of being able to fund the post for itself in the future as income rises with increased visitor numbers.

One in eight women in the county can now expect to be affected by breast cancer at some point in their lives.

This stark fact means the Haven, which provides free practical support to those coping with the disease, expects at least 300 new referrals a year.

Among the donors to One in Eight this week are:

Anonymous £100

Hilary Robinson £10

Merry Millers £13,113

Pat Kelly £35

Anonymous £500

Total to date - £19,588.30