Madam,

I wanted to appeal to your readers to ask them to hold on to their used stamps this Christmas and donate them to Kidney Care UK to help us raise much-needed funds for kidney patients.

Every Christmas more than 1 billion cards are sent in the UK and for every 1kg of used stamps donated we can raise as much as £20 to help people with chronic kidney disease.

There are 64,000 people being treated for kidney failure in the UK right now and 243 people are currently waiting for a kidney transplant in Wales.

Your support will help us to provide practical, financial and emotional support for kidney patients and their families when they need it most.

We believe no-one should face kidney disease alone, and especially not at Christmas.

You can read and download our step by step guide to collecting and donating used stamps at www.kidneycareuk.org

Finally, we hope all of your readers have had a wonderful Christmas and will have a fantastic New Year,

Yours etc,

Francesca Teasdale, Advocacy Officer (Wales), Kidney Care UK.

Have your say on the local issues affecting you - email [email protected] or join in the conversation on our Facebook page