A LIFE-SAVING East Lancashire charity has been awarded a grant of £10,000 to buy new medical equipment.

Rossendale and Pendle Mountain Rescue Team (RPMRT) is celebrating after being unveiled as one of 15 winners in a £150,000 cash giveaway that was set up to leave a lasting legacy in local communities.

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Yorkshire Building Society pledged to donate the money during its 150th anniversary year, and RPMRT was chosen by members of the public to receive the cash boost.

In total, more than 600 charities applied to the Society’s Lasting Legacy Fund before 30 were put forward for a public vote.

RPMRT will use the £10,000 to upgrade medical treatment equipment including splints, medical bags, stretchers and medicine to aid with the search, rescue and immediate treatment of missing or injured people.

The organisation was the only Lancashire-based charity to make it through to the final 15.

Mark Wakeman, community fundraiser, RPMRT said: “We are thrilled that our project has been chosen to be funded as part of the Yorkshire Building Society Lasting Legacy Fund.

“We can’t wait to get started and make a real difference to our community.”

Yorkshire Building Society’s corporate responsibility manager Pauline Giroux, said: “We are proud to commemorate our milestone anniversary by helping charities make a positive difference in their communities.

“We are delighted to be able to support the RPMRT project and we are looking forward to seeing the benefits it will bring.

“To be chosen from over 600 charity projects shows that this is a project that has really resonated with the public and will deliver a tangible benefit to the local community.”

The society’s roots go back to 1864, when the Huddersfield Equitable Permanent Benefit Building Society was founded.

Rossendale MP Jake Berry said: “It’s fantastic to see our Mountain Rescue service recognised and supported in this way. by the Yorkshire Building Society.

“They are a fantastic group of volunteers who provide a vital service to us here in Rossendale.

“And it’s great that a Lancashire charity has been picked by someone from Yorkshire!”