A SHANTY band from St Austell is on the verge of raising a total of £100,000 for charity.

The Pirates of St Piran group performs in full pirate costume to bring in the booty.

So far, the band has given more than £98,000 to charities, including Children’s Hospice South West (CHSW), the RNLI and the Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust.

A spokesperson said: “The money is raised from our gigs, collection buckets, CD sales and music downloads. We perform all over Cornwall and Devon, singing our own unique brand of rocky sea shanties along with our own original songs of the sea. We have so far released eight very popular albums.

“We will be presenting a cheque for £1,000 to the RNLI when we perform at the Falmouth International Sea Shanty Festival in June, which will take us over the £100,000 mark for donations.

“This will be a huge milestone for us and we will be celebrating the achievement with a tankard or two of grog.

“We are a 30-strong group who have been together for 17 years in one form or another and we intend to continue as long as we are able, to achieve our new target of raising £200,000.”

Members of the group giving a cheque to Children's Hospice South West.
Members of the group giving a cheque to Children's Hospice South West. (Picture: Submitted)

The group has supported Little Harbour, CHSW’s hospice at Porthpean, St Austell, for many years. Members recently visited the hospice and presented a cheque of £1,000, taking the total donated to CHSW to more than £10,600.

CHSW area fundraiser Bethany Rudge said: “We are so grateful for the continual support the pirates have shown CHSW over the years.

“Fundraising comes in many wonderful shapes and forms, and this group with their singing, costumes and shows proves that.”

The band has also recently presented a cheque for £1,000 to the Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust.