FOUR prison officers have raised £2,400 for a hospice by cycling coast to coast.

The men, who all work at Frankland Prison, in Brasside, Durham, biked the 143-mile route from Whitehaven to Sunderland over three days in early September.

They raised £1,200 in sponsorship, which was matched by the Prison Service Charity.

The money will go towards running costs of St Cuthbert's Hospice, in Durham, which provides day and overnight care for people with lifelimiting illnesses.

The officers who took part were Graeme Blenkiron, Jimmy Foggon, Peter Bowman and Paul Relton.

Mr Blenkiron said: "We didn't do a lot of training, but most of us are reasonably fit in our job.

"We got perfect weather for cycling - absolutely ideal.

"It was a beautiful route."