A CHILDREN'S charity says volunteers are saving it around £12m a year.

Barnado's, which has a branch in Eltham High Street, has 2,980 volunteers in the London, East and South-East region, but is always keen to recruit more.

The charity, which strives to protect youngsters from abuse and poverty, made the announcement as part of National Volunteer Week which started on June 1 and ends today (June 7).

Director for volunteering, David Booker, said: “This is a staggering sum of money which shows the tremendous support we receive from our volunteers.

"We just wouldn’t be able to do the work we do without their support.“