COWDENBEATH'S highly successful Cancer Research UK charity shop will not re-open after 32 years in the town which has seen more than £2m raised.

Cancer Research UK has thanked the people of Central Fife for raising more than £2 million by supporting their local charity shop on High Street.

As shops across the UK have begun re-opening following lockdown, the charity has announced its High Street shop in Cowdenbeath will remain closed.

Shoppers, staff and volunteers at the shop have raised £2,064,723 to help beat cancer sooner, since it opened in October 1988. Now that the lease has expired, loyal customers are invited to visit Cancer Research UK’s nearest shops in Fife instead – including High Street, Kirkcaldy, Dunfermline’s shops in East Port and High Street, Leven’s High Street shop and the South Street shop in St Andrews.

Area trading manager, Ken Donaldson, issued a heartfelt thanks to all the staff and volunteers who have kept the shop going for more than 30 years.

Ken said: “We’ve had some of the most amazing staff and volunteers help in the Cowdenbeath shop and they have done a fantastic job.

“I want to say a huge thank you to each and every one of them. All our customers are very welcome at our other shops in Fife which sell high quality items with all profits going to Cancer Research UK.

"COVID-19 has slowed us down. But we will never stop. With around 32,200 people diagnosed with cancer every year in Scotland, we are absolutely determined to continue creating better cancer treatments for the future. "Every step our scientists take towards beating cancer relies on every pound raised. So, with the help of shoppers across Fife we believe that together we will still beat cancer.”

The Cowdenbeath shop closure coincides with the launch of an urgent new TV appeal to help get Cancer Research UK’s life-saving work back on track. Thanks to the generosity of its supporters, the charity currently funds around 50 per cent of all cancer research in the UK.

However, as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic, it expects to see its fundraising income decline by up to 30 per cent in the financial year ahead – putting this research at risk.

Cancer Research UK was able to spend around £42 million in Scotland last year on some of the UK’s leading scientific and clinical research.