A group of builders have shown the good side of bad language after their swear jar became part of a £300 fundraising effort for Penryn and Falmouth Food Bank.

The men were refurbishing the Anacapri Hotel on Cliff Road when one of the new managers, June Goodwin, who doesn’t use foul language herself, suggested setting up the forfeit system.

Over just two weeks the workers collected £30 in 10p donations, which was matched by June and fellow manager Peter Millington, before the hotel’s new owner Chris Lee added another £240.

June said: “We are very proud of them all. They put it in when they swore, without being asked.” 

The two managers said they “have an idea” of who had to donate the most to the jar, but June felt it “wouldn’t be fair to say.”

Chris, who took over the hotel in August and is renovating the property before his first guests arrive in January, said: “It was all June’s idea to raise some money over Christmas, which she has done admirably.

“We are delighted to support [the food bank], it’s a proper charity that will benefit the people in the area: we know where it goes.”