A bench that was donated to a South Hams charity by a town’s former mayor has been given a much-needed facelift thanks to a kind-hearted local resident.

Hugh Bennett who works at Kitchen Solutions in Ivybridge stepped in to restore the bench after the charity, Young Devon, issued a request for help. And he not only restored the bench to its former glory, he also added some planted pots to cheer up the area outside the charity’s Erme Road offices.

Cath Tracey from Young Devon said: “The bench was donated to us when we were the YES Centre by Councillor Marc Chapmans, then Mayor of Ivybridge for his Charity of the Year in 2005. Sadly, over the years it fell into disrepair so one of my colleagues put a sign on the bench to ask if anyone would volunteer to repair. A lovely lady called Judy volunteered her husband Hugh. Hugh was only too happy to do it, turning up the following afternoon to assess the damage and returning the next afternoon to fix it.”

After repairing the bench and varnishing it, Hugh returned the following day to give the bench a second coat and also replaced the flowers in the plant pots either side.

Young Devon said: “We would like to thank Hugh and acknowledge his kindness. He is a full time kitchen fitter, so gave up his spare time to fix the bench, which is much appreciated by all here at Central Office, not to mention the many people who use the bench on a regular basis.”

Young Devon is the largest charity for young people in the South West. Its aim is to improve life for all young people in Devon, helping them to build better relationships so they can thrive.