A chance discovery in a box full of books has meant a windfall for two Alton charities.

The valuable find was made at Alton Secondhand Books, a shop in Normandy Street run by Joan Andrews for more than 40 years.

There are thousands of books on the shelves and Joan remains closely involved in the business, selecting stock, pricing and organising online sales.

Alton Secondhand Books is often offered donations - which it does not accept, to prevent the shop being overwhelmed - but it does buy books which staff think will sell.

This spring one of Joan’s team found a signed paperback, published in 1959 and containing an interesting inscription, in a box of purchased books.

Joan said: “As a paperback it wasn’t a first edition, but the author is quite collectable and the message inside the book was unusual.”

The book did well enough at auction for Joan to treat her staff and make donations to two local charities.

Cardiac Health in Alton was one of the charities Joan decided to support.

She said: “I chose Cardiac Health because my husband started exercising there in the 1990s after a heart attack that was nearly fatal.

“I was encouraged to exercise with him and I’ve never stopped, continuing even after my husband passed away.”

Denise Ellis, general manager of Cardiac Health, said: “We are delighted with this generous donation from Joan.

“It will cost us £430,000 to provide 33,500 exercise sessions for local people in 2026, and all our classes are subsidised by funding to keep our vital exercise programmes affordable.

“At Cardiac Health we believe stronger, healthier lives are built together. In our purpose-built facility, exercisers regain confidence, stay active and take control of their health, guided by skilled instructors and tailored programmes with medical oversight.”

Cardiac Health began in 1976 as the Basingstoke and Alton Rehabilitation Unit, with just a few cardiac patients and using facilities at the original Alton Sports Centre.

A team led by local GP Dr Hugh Bethell and physiotherapist Dr Sally Turner supervised and monitored the performance of post-operative patients on a course of graduated exercise.

Early results were encouraging and medical practices in surrounding areas started to refer patients to ‘cardiac rehab’. Within two years the Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital began regularly referring patients to the team.

Taking a research-based approach, they learned from studying the changes in fitness achieved, adjusting the course of tailored exercise and then combining it with education about heart disease, diet, stress management and relaxation.

Demand for its services led to the formation of the Basingstoke and Alton Cardiac Rehabilitation Charity in 1992, with the intention of creating a larger, purpose-built facility to expand and improve the service. This goal was achieved in 1997.

Cardiac Health receives no money from the NHS or the government. It is funded in part by contributions from exercisers, but primarily by the public.

Joan said the second charity to be helped would be Dementia Friendly Alton, with a donation set to be made at a later date.