KIND-HEARTED shoppers can now make a difference to a major charity – and own a limited edition memento of a unique chandelier.

This summer Gateshead’s Metrocentre will be unveiling a spectacular chandelier, the Heart of a Thousand Crystals, which will be the main feature of the new platinum mall.

And the centre has come up with a plan to make this a really memorable event which will raise funds for the Children’s Heart Unit Fund (CHUF).

A thousand replica crystal hearts have been created – each one individually boxed and numbered with a certificate of authenticity – which are on sale for £20 each.

The hope is now to sell all of the hearts and make £20,000 for CHUF’s Home from Home appeal, which is raising £2m to set up a special unit at Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital where the families of children being treated can stay, free of charge.

The hearts will be available from customer services desks around the centre and the hope is that they will be sold in a short space of time and so support the important Home from Home project.

CHUF is working towards creating a new, purpose-built unit which will provide 18 en-suite bedrooms and a self-contained flat for families and their children who are undergoing life-saving heart surgery.

“Children being treated at the Freeman Hospital heart unit are critically ill and many travel a long way from home to receive their treatment,” said Ivan Hollingsworth, one of the CHUF trustees.

“We hope that shoppers will buy a heart and not only have a unique memento of a magical chandelier but will also know that they are helping a very important cause.”

The Heart of a Thousand Crystals will be unveiled on June 5.