A woman who raised nearly £10,000 for victims of a major fire in Petersfield has revealed that scammers tried to take advantage of the town’s generosity.

And Linda Kirkbride wasn’t the only one – as even town mayor Cllr Chris Paige was heartlessly targeted after the Handmade Studios trader launched an appeal on GoFundMe to help victims of the Lavant Street fire.

Linda – who sadly announced last weekend that her shop on The Square is closing – turned to Cllr Paige after struggling to set up a temporary bank account to hand over proceeds to genuine victims.

The mayor told the Post on Sunday an organisation in Petersfield has stepped in so the money can be transferred in public and with transparency, as Linda didn’t want to use her own account.

But he also revealed scammers tried to get their hands on some of the cash, with both receiving an approach from someone pretending to be linked to Lavant Dental.

The practice, which had to vacate the block on the corner of Lavant Street and Chapel Street because of the fire, has moved operations into its Waterlooville branch.

He said: “I had one email saying ‘I’m a partner in a dental surgery and another said they we’re looking to move into one of the flats and lost their deposit.

“I had another saying ‘I lost my dental appointment’ and was travelling from London. It’s just shameful.”

Linda deserves a huge pat on the back for organising the Lavant Street victim appeal, and thinking about them while her lovely shop nears closure.

She said: “People have sent messages to me asking when the money will be handed over.

“I didn’t want to put it through my own account and I wanted to do things the right way. Maybe I was a bit naïve to set it up the way I did, but we want to make sure the people who genuinely need the money get it.”

Repair and clean-up work continues on Lavant Street with efforts to remove debris from the fire-affected site going up a notch on Monday.

The Petersfield Cleaning Services Ltd are involved with skips being continually filled with debris.