FITNESS fans had the opportunity to offload excess baggage in aid of charity last week. Curves women's gym in Trowbridge held a week-long food drive in support of the Trussell Trust.

The event saw new members bring along a bag of food instead of paying the usual membership fee and existing members also making donations. Jonathan Simmonds, 35, who owns the gym franchise with his wife Jessica, said: "The food drive was a great success and we were able to donate over 100 bags of food to the trust."

The Trussell Trust runs a food bank project to provide food boxes to people in short term crisis in Salisbury and south Wiltshire. Adline Lewis, trust administrator, said: "We noticed there was a glitch in the benefits scheme where people may have to wait two weeks for money to come through and may not be able to feed themselves.

"All the food we distribute comes from donations, so Curves has really helped us to feed families in crisis." Curves gym, in The Mill building next to the Shires shopping centre in Trowbridge, has been open for a year and boasts almost 500 members.

Mr Simmonds said: "Our gym is a friendly community of women there are no men and no mirrors. "March is traditionally the lowest month for charitable donations and so we are thinking of turning the food drive' into an annual event."