DEVON Air Ambulance Trust has been given a cash donation to kick start a new partnership with TSB in Okehampton.

The trust has been chosen as TSB’s new local charity partner in Okehampton and to launch the partnership, the TSB branch organised a cake sale, which raised £37 for the charity on top of the £100 donation.

Nationally, TSB is supporting nearly 500 local causes across Britain, chosen from more than 25,000 nominations from customers, members of the general public and partners who work for the bank.

Nicky Furse, bank manager at TSB Okehampton, said: ‘Devon Air Ambulance is a local cause that’s close to people’s hearts here in Okehampton and we are delighted to welcome them as our new local charity partner.

‘We’re busy planning lots of fundraising activities for the coming months and can’t wait to build our partnership with them and support the vital work that they do for our local community.’

Tracy Owen, fundraising manager for Devon Air Ambulance, said: ‘We are extremely grateful to the customers of TSB for choosing to support us. Corporate support from the local communities is so important to us and it is with thanks to this kind of support that we have been able to extend our service to operate until midnight. The support we receive from TSB will enable us to continue developing our service and we look forward to working with them to support them in their fundraising.’

TSB said it understood that no-one knew their local community better than the people who live there, which is why, each year, the bank asks local people to nominate a local cause that they would like them to partner with.

TSB’s first local charity partnerships came to an end in June 2016 and the bank and its local communities have already donated more than £1-million to causes across Britain since the programme began.

Further details of TSB’s local charity partnerships can be found at www.tsb.co.uk/community-partnerships