A new charity shop in East Oxford has become the latest in a flurry of fundraising activity from Helen and Douglas House hospice.

The Cowley Road store, which is the 12th to be opened by the charity, is now the closest one to the hospice in Magdalen Road.

In recent weeks, the charity, which cares for children and young adults with life-limiting conditions, has opened shops in Henley, Witney and Chipping Norton.

Before the end of the summer, five more will have sprung up: in Thame, Aylesbury, Reading, Templars Square in Cowley and an as-yet-unconfirmed location.

The Cowley Road store was opened on Monday by Sister Frances Dominica, the founder of Helen and Douglas House.

Shop manager Sarah Brett said: "We have been very busy and we have had a lot of interest.

"I think people recognise the shop because we are a local charity, so it should be well supported.

"The shop is very modern and a lot more wheelchair friendly.

"Some of the young adults from the house can come and work here."

David Cryer, the charity's retail manager, said: "This was our 12th shop to open in four years, and within that number, eight have been in the last 18 months, so we started slowly but we are now accelerating.

"The opening went really well and the first day's takings were very strong. We are in a really good position opposite Tesco, so the the footfall is very good.

"This latest shop is very close to the hospice so it has much stronger local links.

"Cowley Road has a fairly unique customer profile with so many students and young people so we have focused on small electrical items and records - and the first day's sales showed those were the most popular items.

"The shops offer three functions.

"We take money through the tills, they make people aware of us so they might do other fundraising, and our name is also out there so families can find out what kind of care we provide."

"The Cowley Road really comes alive after 5pm so we may end up changing the shop's opening hours from 9am to 5pm to 10am to 6pm to maximise that footfall."

To volunteer at the shop, call 01235 764490 or go to the website www.helenanddouglashouse.org