'Oaks to present £36k charity donation

Cast members from Hollyoaks will today hand over a substantial charity donation after the soap's latest fundraising efforts secured a five-figure sum for good causes.

The latest Hollyoaks Charity Ball, held last year, raised just over £36,000 which will now be donated to Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool and Claire House Hospice in nearby Wirral.

Hollyoaks' production company Lime Pictures has a long history of supporting Alder Hey and has donated a total of £85,000 to the hospital over the years.

Lime Pictures' managing director Sean Marley commented: "It is really good to have the opportunity to give something back to our local community and Lime Pictures are proud to be supporting Alder Hey and Claire House.

"We would like to thank those who attended last year's Hollyoaks Charity Ball as it's their generosity that makes this happen. We are certainly looking forward to doing it all again later this year."

Alder Hey's senior fundraising manager Chris Done added: "We are indebted to Lime Pictures for their amazing support - particularly given the difficult economic climate.

"In particular, we'd like to thank Lime for organising the Hollyoaks Charity Ball every year and also to the Hollyoaks football team who have played up and down the country, in all weathers, to raise funds for us. They have all been fantastic."

Stars from Hollyoaks will take time out from their filming schedules to present the donations to Alder Hey and Claire House later today.