Dudley Royal British Legion raises record £33k for Poppy Appeal

Donations for the campaign have continued to soar during the past four years and are up from around £10,000 in 2010.

Branch chairman Malcolm Davis said he was 'absolutely delighted' by the fundraising total of £32,866 but said more donations were still being received.

The figure includes money raised by schools in the borough, including Sutton School and Specialist College, which has received a trophy for raising the highest average amount per pupil, and Dudley College.

Mr Davis, who was elected branch chairman in 2009, said he was pleased the appeal continued to be well-supported and it was helping to increase awareness.

"I think there are lot of reasons why we are getting more donations, it would be hard to pick just one.

"The anniversary of the start of the First World War and the situation in Afghanistan and Iraq has made people more aware of why soldiers need our help.

"There was a terrific amount of soldiers injured in Afghanistan and money raised by the Poppy Appeal goes towards helping with their rehabilitation.

"We certainly do all we can to make people aware of why we are raising the money.

"We have a lot of help from schools and the college - about three per cent of the turnover comes from them.

"We also do well at Merry Hill and the Churchill shopping centre as well as Tesco - they are all very supportive.

"All of this, I think, has helped to increase the turnover. We're still expecting some more donations to trickle in so hopefully we will reach £33,000. It's great amount and I am very pleased. We are always very grateful to everyone who donated money to the appeal, it really is appreciated by everyone, " added Mr Davis.