IT MAY not be the X-Factor, but the 1st Charmouth Scout Group are pleading for your votes to help them secure a number one spot.

The scout group, which currently has 39 members, is looking for ways to raise money to refurbish their dilapidated headquarters.

Having already received £8,000 from two local donors, scout leader Kevin Payne set about thinking of other fundraising ideas and came across the ‘Cash for Causes’ initiative.

Run by Kumho Tyres, they ask those who sell their tyres to nominate a local charity into the national voting competition, with the winners receiving a donation.

The Bridport Tyre Specialists nominated the scout group, and after an initial push in handing out leaflets and putting signs up in windows, the scouts currently lie fourth in the table and need more votes to go higher.

Voting finishes at the end of this month.

Mr Payne said: “We are really thankful to David Hawkins at Bridport Tyres for nominating us and we are hopeful we can push on and get into the top two spots. We do really need the money to refurbish the headquarters, anyone who has been there will know it is dilapidated, so I urge people to vote.”

When Mr Payne arrived in 2011, the 1st Charmouth Scout group were three weeks away from closure and only had 10 members signed up.

Now, they boast a membership of 18 cubs and 21 scouts and are due to relaunch their beavers section, adding another 10 members, making the refurbishment of the headquarters more important.

They need to raise £25,000 overall for work to start and hope to build a new garage to store all their equipment, refurbish the toilets and kitchen, install heating and lay a new floor.

Mr Payne added: “I have a really great team of adult leaders and the kids are great and they deserve a better headquarters for them to gather.

“The hut was donated to the scout group in 1965 from the old army camp, so you can imagine the state of it and it really does need a lot of work doing to it.”

To vote for the scout group visit kumhocauses.com/find-a-cause and search for the scout group /epc.php?epckey =74bb7d8c79857ea3 and click on cause two.

If you would like more information about the 1st Charmouth Scout group contact Kevin Payne on 01308 459080.