The Folkestone Town Sprucer is a two-pronged freely-delivered charitable service supported entirely by donations. Mission one is to make our town a better place to live. Mission two is to help the long-term unemployed return to full-time work.

Since they began in 2013, Sprucer Peter Phillips and his team of job-seekers and volunteers have become an effective and much-loved task-force. They carry out 101 jobs throughout Folkestone and the wider district of Shepway. Five days a week, they litter-pick (up to 30 bags a day), restore public footpaths and cycleways, remove graffiti, clean road signs, litter-bins and junction boxes and help with gardening and DIY for the disabled and elderly. They boost civic pride.

At the same time, Peter's team of a dozen job-seekers is ever-changing as members gain practical skills, confidence and buffed-up CVs enabling them to move on to full-time employment. In the past two years, some 15 job-seekers have found work as a direct result of their involvement with the scheme. Peter has a knack of enthusing and inspiring his team. Often joining as dispirited and uncertain, members rapidly gain pride in their work and the appreciation of the public. Chins go up, team-spirit develops. They have a reason to get up in the morning.

The Folkestone Town Sprucer is run by the local charity Sunflower House. It costs £22,500 a year. Income is entirely from donations. The Sprucer receives no support from the town or district councils. Major donations come from the Roger De Haan Charitable Trust, the Henry Smith Charity and Wilmoths Citroen Folkestone, the latter donating the work van. Right now, however, we still have a shortfall of £4,000 - hence this appeal to keep going until autumn.

In the ongoing regeneration of Folkestone, we believe the Town Sprucer is a key element in environmental improvement and the alleviation of unemployment in one of the most deprived towns in Kent.