Ref. 29986-09Theft from charity shops in Swindon is on the increase. Clothes, CDs, videos and bric-a-brac are among the items stolen on a regular basis from the Sue Ryder shop, in Victoria Road.

And that's not the only shop feeling the effects of a new spate of charity theft.

Bags of donations left outside the Sue Ryder shop seldom make it to the shelves because thieves take them overnight.

Patricia Puckey, 50, has managed the shop for the past eight years and says that the problem is getting worse.

She said: "It's quite horrifying. People will take anything. If there was a screw loose, they'd take it."

Thieves have also tried taking larger items, including furniture, hat boxes and musical instruments.

Ms Puckey said: "One man tried walking out with a coffee table, but I caught him red-handed. People who you wouldn't suspect do it, so we have to keep our eyes peeled. Then there are regulars who keep coming back and stuffing their pockets with CDs."

Video tapes are now removed from their cases and kept in a back room to try to stop the shoplifting. And people are being asked to bring in donations when the shop is open, as opposed to leaving them outside overnight.

Patricia said: "A piano was left outside once, but we never saw it. The culprits have no conscience. It's low, but it doesn't shock me any more."

Prospect Hospice shops are also being targeted. Hazel Piper, senior shop manager at the shop in Havelock Street, said: "Theft is on the increase. We don't have CCTV or security guards and rely on our own network of informants." Besides taking stock, opportunist thieves have also had their hand in the till. People even stole the collection box on the counter, which has now been permanently removed.

Mrs Piper, 57, said: "It is not safe to leave it there, so customers now have to hand us donations in person. It is awful to come to this. You wouldn't think people could steal from a charity."

A common ploy is for thieves to take several items into the changing rooms and walk out wearing stolen goods under their own clothes.

This is a tactic known only too well by staff at the British Heart Foundation shop, also in Havelock Street. Manager Virginia Ward, 49, said: "One man is even more brazen. He comes in every other Friday for a fresh pair of trousers. He puts them on and hangs his old ones on the hanger."

Mrs Ward has no qualms about confronting the culprits, who are aged from 14 to 60. She said: "They can be very abusive. Many of our volunteers are elderly, so feel threatened."

If Mrs Ward spots someone suspicious she calls other charity shops to warn them. She said: "It happens all the time and is a continual battle. It is upsetting to think people can be so heartless."

Alvina Kumar, spokeswoman for Swindon Police, said: "While all incidents of theft are reprehensible, stealing from charity shops is particularly deplorable and beyond the understanding of law abiding citizens.

"Sadly, there is a problem with this particular type of crime and we urge witnesses to come forward with information so we can take positive action against those responsible."

Swindon Police can be contacted on 01793 528111.

Victoria Tagg