VOLUNTEERS at a charity in Holt that sends refurbished tools to countries on the African continent have appealed for more items.

Members of the Tools for Self Reliance team at the United Reformed Church say they need more tools to send abroad.

The charity refurbishes more than 100 different kinds of tools to send to former colonial countries such as Ghana, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Uganda and Zambia.

Their spokesman Geraint Owen said: "We need all sorts of hand tools for refurbishing which will go into tool kits from carpentry to shoe repair to auto mechanics.

"They are used to help people to get out of subsistence farming and to teach them trades that could lead to self-employment or better jobs.

"We also need electrical tools, such as quality drills, routers and sanders. We don't send gardening tools but we do refurbish and send sewing machines.

"We aim to refurbish tools and sewing machines to a high standard for the various kits that will be sent to Africa."

The tool kits they send will be used to give people an opportunity to learn a trade, such as carpentry, tailoring, welding and bricklaying, with the aim of giving them a skill for life.

The charity helps to drag people out of poverty and empower them to build a better life for themselves by setting up a self-employed business or training them to earn a sustainable income.

The team of ten volunteers meet every Wednesday from 9am to 12.30pm at the United Reformed Church in Holt.