THOUSANDS of pounds worth of counterfeit clothing were handed to a charity yesterday by Darlington Borough Council.

The 700 items of clothing, mainly T-shirts, polo shirts, fleeces and tracksuit bottoms, were seized by trading standards officers during the past 12 months.

They are being given to BDF New Life, the trading arm of Birth Defects Foundation, a national charity which aims to improve child health.

The clothes will be processed to remove counterfeit branding, and then sold through the charity's retail outlets.

Councillor Stephen Harker, cabinet member for community protection, said: "We want to ensure that shoppers in Darlington are not being misled and can be confident about the quality of goods they are buying. This is the first time we have worked with BDF New Life, and I am pleased these clothes can be put to good use."