A CHILDREN’s charity based in Poole says ‘sheer desperation’ must have caused somebody to steal a collection tin from their shop.

Volunteers at Julia’s House children’s hospice’s shop in Lower Blandford in Broadstone were holding a meeting last Friday morning, when an unknown person came in.

The thief is believed to have cut the chain connecting the tin to the counter before quietly leaving unnoticed, sometime between 10am and noon on November 29.

Marta Langmire, retail manager for Julia’s House, says the perpetrator must have come prepared to be able to cut the chain.

She said: “It is shocking that at this time of year this could happen.”

She added: “It is frightening and is a sad state of affairs, but it must have been through sheer desperation that someone took this from a charity.

“The shop was having a volunteer meeting when it happened, and during that time, somebody took one of our fully-loaded collection tins.”

Marta says that at least three members of staff would have been in the shop at the time, and so it would have been taken when they all weren’t looking.

“It’s really hard on the volunteers as well because they do a really good job, and this is shown by the amount of donations that we receive.

“There is nothing positive that can be said about this situation.”

Julia’s House is Dorset’s hospice dedicated to children with life-limiting conditions and the majority of those cared for are unlikely to live beyond the age of 18.

It costs around £3.4million to run the charity for 2013 and less than 10 per cent of its total annual funding comes from the government.

Witnesses and anyone with information should contact Dorset Police on 101, quoting incident number C13:C050128.