STAFF at a Peebles coffee house are donning their Disney costumes to mark World Book Day and fundraise for a local charity.

The team at Costa Coffee, on Peebles High Street, are raising funds today (Thursday, March 2) to kick-off a month-long drive for the sight loss charity RNIB to record a 'talking book' for blind and partially sighted children.

It was prompted by the efforts of Peebles optometrist Linda Quinn, who has already raised funding from activities such as an afternoon tea-party and carrying out everyday tasks while wearing special spectacles that simulate sight loss.

Customers will be able to take part in a Lucky Squares competition and swap books from a special shelf in the store in return for a donation.

Manager Kayleigh Lunt said: "RNIB talking books are something that Costa Peebles is really pleased to be able to support. We knew Linda Quinn had set herself a goal to raise the £1,500 needed to make an audio book which has inspired us to do the same!

"We will be fundraising throughout the month of March to try and match Linda's amazing efforts. We are using World Book Day to kick start our fundraising efforts where the team will be dressed as Disney characters in store.

"We know we can raise the money for such a great cause and are really happy we can be involved!"

Angela Preston, fundraising manager for RNIB Scotland, said: "Books are so important for children, in stretching their imaginations, enhancing their literacy and knowledge, and not least for sharing the sheer fun of well-loved literary characters - from Thomas the Tank Engine to Harry Potter - with their peers."

"But unless books are also made available in accessible formats like audio, braille or large-print, children with sight loss will be excluded from this wonderful world.

"That's why it's so fantastic that staff in Costa Coffee are helping us. It costs up to £1,500 to professionally narrate and record a RNIB 'talking book' for children and takes five days on average.

"So we very much rely on the support of the public to make sure people with sight loss of all ages don't miss out on the sheer joy of a good book."

Costa Coffee staff will also volunteer to pack bags at Tesco on Saturday, March 25.

Last month, Peebles became the first town in the UK to sponsor 'talking books' as a community when local businesses, community groups and school-children raised over £8,000 for four titles.

The RNIB 'talking books' library, the largest in Europe, provides over 30,000 audio-books a year to adults and children with sight loss. The youngest reader is one year old and the oldest 104.

For more information, or to sponsor a 'talking book', visit www.rnib.org.uk/sponsortalkingbooks