TELEVISION personality Scarlett Moffatt has launched a charity to help people in her home region which has supported her rise to fame.

The 2016 winner of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! has announced that the Angel Trust will support a range of projects and individuals across County Durham and Darlington.

The 28-year-old, who became a household name after appearing on the Channel 4’s Gogglebox show, teamed up with drag artist Tess Tickle and charity fundraiser Clair McGregor to launch the charity on April 2.

The board of trustees and ambassadors includes her mother Betty Moffatt, who was also on Gogglebox.

Speaking to The Northern Echo at her house in Toft Hill, near Bishop Auckland, Scarlett said: “This is my home.

“I’m down London a lot and sometimes I feel as if those in the County Durham and Darlington areas don't get as many opportunities as those in London so this charity is really important to help local people.”

She added: “We are really proud to be part of it because it’s for local people.”

Chief executive Ms McGregor has spent eight years in the sector but was keen to launch a charity specifically for local people.

In its first two weeks the charity provided funds to help a family pay for a funeral and for a woman with cancer to enjoy a night at a hotel in Durham with her husband.

It also gave a new strip to a Newton Aycliffe girls’ football team, which has renamed itself the Aycliffe Angels in the charity’s honour.

Ms McGregor said: “People are getting behind us because they can see where the money is going so they are prepared to help us. We want to call on the support of all the local people and businesses.”

Funds are raised through events with everything from band nights and craft fairs to larger fundraisers such as a ladies’ day at Hardwick Hall and an arctic survival challenge in Sweden.

Ms Tickle and fellow female impersonators The Dragettes, Emma Royd and Miss Cara will share their talents by appearing in fundraising shows.

The board meets once a month to monitor the charity and review applications.

Members also post whatever donations they have received or made on their Facebook page, Angel Trust.

“We can see the difference we have made and feel we have done a really good deed,” Scarlett said. “I’m really excited about the future of Angel Trust and we are going to have lots of fun.”

Ms Tickle added: “We want to be a charity for the people – we have tried to keep it as general as possible, so everyone has the chance to apply.

She added: “We have all got the same goal - to help people.”

For more information visit angeltrust.co.uk or search for Angel Trust on Facebook.