Age Concern forced to shut Preston charity shop after thieves raid safe

Thieves reportedly broke into the Age Concern charity shop in Market Place in the early hours of Tuesday morning (August 11).

The shop had only reopened the day before (Monday, August 10) following four months of closure due to lockdown.

Management at the shop said thieves had caused 'significant damage', which they expect will cost thousands of pounds to repair.

They said the intruders had also raided the safe, stealing all of its cash and leaving it 'completely empty'. The charity did not say how much money has been stolen.

The charity said it will now be forced to spend money raised through donations and the sale of stock to fix the damage.

It said it expects the city centre shop, which had recently been revamped, to remain closed for "some time".

An Age Concern spokesman said: "After weeks of planning and just the first day of re-opening, we have been forced to close our Market Place shop in Preston due to a break-in overnight.

"In a bitter blow, the theft has caused significant damage which will cost thousands of pounds to repair and left the safe completely empty.

"We are now forced to spend scarce charitable money, depleted after COVID-19, to fix the damage.

"We will lose significant levels of income due to the closure which is likely to be in place for some time."

Lancashire Police said they were unable to comment on the incident.

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