Owners of a guest house in Dorchester have been busy fundraising to support four local charities this year, thanks to people renting their rooms.

Wendy and Derek Caws, the owners of Aquila Heights in Maiden Castle Road, supported different causes which all have a connection to their business. During their peak summer season, they nominated a different deserving cause each month. Each night they donated £1 for every room occupied by guests.

The guest house was also themed to highlight each chosen charity, with literature, posters and bunting decorating the walls, and there were wristbands, pin badges and pens to give away, in exchange for guest donations.

Wendy explained the connection between the charities and the guest house: “Both of us lost a parent to dementia, so the Alzheimer’s Society will always be important to us. We raised funds for them during May half term week and throughout June.

“We have guests regularly staying with us visiting family and friends being cared for in Dorset County Hospital or at the Weldmar hospice. We always hear amazing feedback of the care provided in both these places, so we were pleased to be able to support them throughout August and September respectively.

“We also chose the Dorset & Somerset Air Ambulance, as we appreciate its importance in getting aid to people quickly in such a rural area, and the air ambulance is a common sight in the skies over Aquila Heights en-route to the county hospital. We were pleased to support their work throughout July.”

Derek added: “We hope that by doing this ourselves, and letting everyone know about it, that we will inspire other B&Bs and hotels to do something similar. We have just six guest bedrooms, yet we managed to raise £750 in one summer.

“There are literally hundreds of places like us across Dorset and, even if only a few of us ran schemes like this, imagine how much we could raise together. We could make a huge difference, especially for our local charities. Although we are mostly very small businesses, together we can make a significant contribution to our community.

“We would be delighted if some other businesses could join us next summer. WIf anyone needs support to set up their own scheme, we’d be delighted to help them if they get in touch.”