Residents are being urged to dig deep for loose change in a fundraising campaign by their local hospice.
The St Clare Hospice is hoping to double its collection box total this year after collecting £2,000 in 2011.
The charity has collection boxes in its shops across the region, for people to fill with their loose change.
Community fundraiser Camilla Whitby said: “Last year, £2,000 was raised from spare change collected in our home collection boxes. This year, we are hoping to double that figure to £4,000, which would be enough to pay for the hospice’s in-patient unit for a whole 24 hours for up to eight patients.
“The average amount of change raised in each box last year was £10, which means we only need 400 people to fill a box with their spare change and our new target will be reached.
“Four hundred people from a population of around 300,000 should be achievable, we hope. Your small change can make a big difference.”
The hospice provides free service to patients and their carers and this costs over £2.6 million every year. The NHS pays around 24% of this.
The hospice is also calling for keen cyclists to take part in its Amsterdam48 Cycle Challenge in July. The 48-hour, 200km ride will start in Stansted and follow a route, including ferry crossing, to Holland.
Other challenges this year also include a 100km night-time cycle ride around London in June and a London to Paris cycle ride in September.