BURGLARS have broken into a charity shop and stolen £400 in takings.

The Cancer Research UK store in The Cross, Worcester, was targeted between Friday, February 4, and yesterday when staff arrived to discover the upstairs office had been ransacked.

The store’s manager Nichola Brown, who has only been at the shop two weeks, said staff had worked long and hard over Friday and Saturday trading only to discover “it was for nothing.”

Miss Brown said: “Saturday was the best day we’ve had since I got here. The staff, the volunteers all worked so hard.”

The shop’s rear window had been broken and an outside wheelie bin had been pushed up against the rear of the shop, which is one possible point of entry police are investigating.

Thieves then took £22.50 out of the ground floor cash till and broke into the safe, making off with a Gucci watch and about £400 stored in cash bags ready to be taken to the bank on Monday.

The burglary happened between 5.30pm on Friday and 8.50am yesterday.

“The Gucci watch has a round silver face but is quite distinctive as it is missing the fastening ‘belt loop’ on its brown strap,” said Miss Brown.

PC Rich Harris said: “We are appealing for information from anyone who saw anything suspicious in the area between the times given, knows who is responsible or has been offered a watch matching the description for sale.”

Anyone with information should call police on 0300 3333000 quoting 151/S/070211 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.