An Accrington lady was the lucky winner of the £4,750 rollover jackpot in the East Lancashire Hospice Lottery which raises vital funds for the hospice.

Eileen Brown from Accrington was delighted to receive a phone call from the hospice with the good news. She commented: “I never envisaged winning that amount of money, and what a perfect time of year to win £4,750 – it’s amazing!”

Mrs Brown has been playing the lottery for the past few years and was delighted to have won this top prize unexpectedly in the 27th December draw.

She said: “I was so surprised when I got the call, I was absolutely thrilled! It didn’t sink in at first. I told my husband, David, as soon as I got off the phone and then called my son and daughter to tell them the good news.”

Eileen, along with her husband were welcomed by the fundraising team to be presented with her cheque at East Lancashire Hospice.

She explained how she is looking forward to spending her winnings on a holiday to Croatia and has already purchased a new tumble dryer after her old tumble dryer broke just before Christmas.

It was an easy decision for her to join the hospice lottery, as she said: “The hospice lottery is a fantastic way to donate to such a worthy cause and you never know, you might win as I did!”

Lucinda Bury, Fundraising and Marketing Assistant at East Lancashire Hospice, said: “Many congratulations to Eileen on scooping this amazing jackpot prize. Thank you so much for your continued support in playing the lottery for East Lancashire Hospice, your membership really does make all the difference to patients and their families in need of hospice care.”

The East Lancashire Hospice Lottery draw usually takes place on a Friday with 18 guaranteed prizes every week from £10 to £1,000. Now that the rollover jackpot has been won, it goes back to £250 and if not won the amount increases each week by £250 up to a maximum of £10,000, at which point it must be won.

For more information about the East Lancashire Hospice and to pay online by direct debit or credit/debit card visit https://eastlancshospice.org.uk/lottery. It costs just £1 per play per week to join. Every £1 helps the hospice to provide the patient care and specialist support for people with life-limiting illnesses in the local community, and to offer support to their families. Lottery players must be 16 or over.