A MOTHER has bought new books for Southend Foodbank after raising thousands for World Book Day.

Joanne Randall, from Hockley, had spent the last month raising money to give books to children of vulnerable families, who visit Foodbanks, for World Book Day last Thursday, March 3.

She bought Usborne books with the £1,100 raised and gifted them to Southend Foodbank to hand out to children of visiting families.

Mrs Randal said she was thrilled with the support she received.

She said: “I really wanted to reach my target of £1,000 for books, but I thought it would be quite a challenge to get there in time for World Book Day.

“But I am absolutely thrilled by the amazing support I have received from businesses and individuals, and I am so grateful and proud to have reached the target and donated all these books for children, who may not have one otherwise.”

Usborne also pledged to donate 10 per cent of the total raised in free books on top of Mrs Randal’s work.

Last week, after raising the money and buying the books, she took them down to Southend Foodbank.

Mrs Randal added since becoming a mum she has always wanted to be involved and help the community.

She said: “I feel really fortunate to be in a position where I can do something to make a difference to my community.

“It is not something I was able to experience when I worked in London, but since becoming a mum, I wanted to become more involved in the community and make a difference in a positive way.

“The foodbank was amazed at just how many books we were able to deliver to them and started to distribute them to all of their centres the same day too.

“Spending even just ten minutes every-day enjoying books together can make a big difference to a child’s development, so I fortunate to be able to do this for vulnerable children and families in Southend.”