PLANS to look at restarting a furniture charity in Darwen which went out of business in January have been announced.

Geoff Tolley, president of Darwen Rotary Club, is behind the idea and has been contacted by many people who want to see the charity return.

The 75-year-old former minister at the Central United Reformed Church was involved in setting up the Churches Action furniture store in 1990. But after funding cuts, the charity was forced to close.

Mr Tolley, of Nave Close, Darwen, said: “A number of people have mentioned to me that they are missing it, and we are now looking into whether we can set up again.”

A public meeting has been called to gauge community support for the venture. The charity ran in separate units at Kay Street, Darwen, and Chapel Street, Blackburn, for 20 years before closing around a year ago.

It helped 1,500 families in 2010 and 56 trainees went on to gain full-time jobs from its workshop. But Mr Tolley said the charity had possibly grown too big and he would be looking at bringing it back on a smaller scale.

He said: “At this stage we do not have a venue and I don’t know what the support will be from the community but I would like to try to bring the charity back.

“When we started in 1990 it was just volunteers and it provided a valuable service to those in need. It helped a lot of people. I hope the meeting will be a success.”

The meeting takes place on January 9 at 2pm at the Central United Reformed Church.