A BOLTON-based national eye charity is a quarter of the way to reaching its survival target.

Vision Aid had to raise £400,000 by the end of the year to buy a new HQ or face closure.

It's raised a quarter of the money in just six weeks and has also identified new premises to move into.

Now the charity wants to push on with the fund-raising and reach the magic halfway mark of £200,000 as soon as possible.

Director General, Lesley Green - who set up the charity from her living room after her own daughter was born blind and has watched it grow into one of the most important children's eye charities in the country - said: "It is going very well but there is still a long way to go.

"People have been very generous and without the help of the BEN and its readers we wouldn't have been able to get this far. We are still desperate for money but the appeal is going extremely well.

"We've identified new premises in Bolton but we haven't signed any contracts yet. We need another £100,000 before we have the confidence to do that so the next six weeks are very important and we need to push ahead with the fund-raising." Since the BEN helped launch the Vision Aid appeal last month, donations have been flooding in.

Many townsfolk have flocked to help and arranged sponsored events to raise cash.

The new mayor and mayoress, Alan and Denise Wilkinson, are visiting Vision Aid's Chorley New Road premises on 15 June to lend their support.

And on 24 June members of Bolton Area Divers are breaking the boredom barrier and holding a sponsored diveathon at Turton Leisure Centre swimming pool. Their task is to stay submerged for nine hours! Not very exciting, says member Alan Robinson, but worth it to raise money.

Mrs Green added: "It is great what people are doing and we hope the money keeps coming in to allow us to carry on."

Vision Aid has helped more than 30,000 blind and visually impaired children from all over the country since it's launch in 1984 and is the only national charity based in Bolton.

But the lease on its present HQ runs out at the end of the year and it costs too much to renew it. And even if it was affordable the charity has become too big to stay in the building.

It needs new premises and it needs £400,000 to buy them.

Anyone who wants to help should contact Vision Aid on 01204 531 882.