A WOMAN has written her first poetry book to raise money for a Dorset-based cancer charity.

Kay Ridout has penned "The Quiet Girl in the Classroom" and all the profits are going to the Dorset Cancer Care Foundation.

She described the book as "a mixture of poems about my observations of life".

DCCF is a charity that gives financial assistance to those who are going through cancer.

When a family friend went to the DCCF for help, Mrs Ridout saw first-hand how the charity is changing people's lives.

Mrs Ridout began raising money for charity when she encouraged her wedding guests not to buy gifts but to partake in a charity raffle. The couple raised over £500 for the DCCF on their wedding day alone in May.

Realizing that her husband Gary and herself would not be able to run a marathon or do a skydive, Mrs Ridout had the idea to use her passion for poetry to help fundraise for the foundation.

"I have always been a keen writer," Mrs Ridout tells us. "Poetry has always held a special place in my heart, mainly because my late Mum was a brilliant poet."

Usually, Mrs Ridout, from Shillingstone, wrote poems in times of trouble and ill-health. "Writing poetry was my therapy," Mrs Ridout explains. "and helped me through my dark times."

"There are poems about my family, the people that I miss and poems that are about cats and quite funny. It's a real mix."

By self-publishing the book, Mrs Ridout has managed to keep the costs low, allowing more money to go to the charity.

Being Mrs Ridout's first fundraiser like this, she's not putting a cap on how much she wants to raise.

"I've done lots of charity work in the past, but nothing like this. I'm just going to see what happens."

"We've published 200 books so far, and when they sell out, we'll get more printed.

"It's always been a dream of mine to publish a book. This way, I'm living a dream and doing good."

To purchase the book, costing £5 each, you can buy it through Mrs Ridout herself or from two local shops, The Country Fayre, Shillingstone and The Cross Stores, Child Okeford.

If you need assistance from the charity, more information can be found on their website www.dccf.co.uk.