THE niece of an architect who spearheaded a hospice fundraising campaign has raised hundreds of pounds for the appeal.

Rob Niven, 51, of the Darlngton architects' firm Niven and Niven, died last August, just months after being diagnosed with terminal liver cancer.

Days before he died, Mr Niven supported an appeal to raise money for a full-time care unit at St Teresa's Hospice in Darlington.

Mr Niven spent time in the hospice before his death, receiving holistic treatments to ease his pain.

He was so impressed with the care at the hospice that the put his name to the full-time care unit campaign and urged other business men and women to sign up to regularly donate money.

Now Mr Niven's niece, Anna Gisby, has raised £350 for the appeal by running the Flora Light Challenge half- marathon in Hyde Park, London.

The hospice wants to raise £250,000 to open the full-time unit and get further funding to pay for its running costs.

At the moment, the Woodland Road hospice can only offer palliative care for day patients, but it wants to open six beds to offer full-time care for people who do not want to die in hospital or at home.

The unit could also be used for respite care if a carer or relative wanted a break from their responsibilities.

The appeal, backed by The Northern Echo, has already raised £71,820 and the hospice hopes to open the new bedrooms at Easter.

A race night organised by Darlington Business Club before Christmas raised £1,000 for the appeal.

Ladbrokes donated a £100 White Christmas bet to be raffled on the night - but, sadly, this year's snow falls came too late for the lucky punter to claim the £500 winnings.

Many of the donations making up the running total have come from people signing pledge forms to give money regularly to the hospice.

Hospice director Jane Bradshaw said: "We are delighted that so many businesses, organisations and individuals have rallied around to raise funds for the hospice. This is a crucial time for the hospice.

"We have announced that we will open our in-patient unit after Easter. This is something of a calculated risk but we hope that through continued support we will be able to sustain this important addition to our Hospice at Home and Day Care services."

To join the campaign, telephone Craig Linton on (01325) 254319, or visit the website cldarlington.hospice.org.uk