GENEROUS slimmers have raised £13,500 for charity by donating clothes they no longer need because of their weight loss.

Members of Slimming World groups across Colchester collected 540 bags full of clothes, shoes, and accessories as part of the The Big Slimming World Clothes Throw.

Each bag is donated to Cancer Research UK and thought to be worth roughly £25 each.

Consultant Gemma Nachman has shed three stone.

She said: "It felt amazing to see my members donating all of their old clothes as it signifies them maintaining their fabulous weight losses.

"£Bagging them up and saying goodbye was like a celebration of just how far they’d come.

"One of the things members love after losing their weight is being able to go into any clothes shop and choose whatever they like.

“Cancer Research UK is a fantastic charity and it’s great to know that the money raised from our donated items will help support life-saving research.”

Consultants ferried the bags to a storage unit before loading them into a collection truck.

Carla Belmonte said “The members never fail to amaze me with their weight loss results week after week and it has been great to see so many bags of clothes donated through The Big Slimming World Clothes Throw.

"Our group is always buzzing and when we collected the bags up and saw what a phenomenal amount there were altogether, and we realised what a difference we could make, the atmosphere was just electric.

“Lots of people don’t know maintaining a healthy weight helps reduce the risk of developing some types of cancer.

"All of the wardrobes cleared and every donation made by our members, their friends and families will make a huge difference to Cancer Research UK and we’re so grateful for everyone’s support.

“The clothes throw has been a great chance for the members who have done so well to celebrate their amazing weight losses by saying goodbye to their ‘before’ clothes."

For more information about Slimming World groups in Colchester visit slimmingworld.co.uk.