The Staffordshire Hoard was discovered by an amateur metal detectorist in July 2009. With over 1,500 items the collection is the largest ever found and is worth £3.3 million.

There is a real threat that if enough money can not be raised to save the Hoard it will be split up and sold on the open market. That is why I am supporting The Art Fund’s campaign to save the Hoard, so that it can be seen by people on display in the West Midlands.

Two key museums in our region - Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery and The Potteries Museum and Art Gallery in Stoke-on-Trent are hoping to jointly acquire the Hoard.

The collection has some beautiful pieces dating from the 7^th century and tells us much about the people living in what was the region of Mercia. There is speculation that the hoard was war bounty, buried to be retrieved at a later date.

It is a national treasure that we should keep for generations to come and for people from across the world to see.

We have until the 17^th April to raise enough money and I am hopeful that the Government’s National Heritage Memorial Fund will be generous in this case.

For more information see The Art Fund’s website.