A PLUMBER has launched a campaign to provide free plumbing services for the elderly this winter.

James Anderson, from Burnley, previously raised more than £80,000 after an 'invoice' went viral, showing he charged a 91-year-old customer who had leukaemia nothing to fix a leaky boiler.

Now, with the UK facing its coldest winter in a decade, he wants to expand the scheme to help more vulnerable people across the country.

The GoFundMe page aims to raise £30,000 ­— enough to help an additional 1,000 households.

James Anderson launched Disabled and Elderly Plumbing and Heating Emergency Response (Depher) in 2017 and has since helped more than 2,000 families.

The network currently offers the service to people in Lancashire, Manchester, Leeds, Nottingham and Scotland and Mr Anderson is keen to recruit more plumbers throughout the UK.

He said: “Last winter over 50,000 people died because of the cold weather and, this year, it is set to be even harsher.

"Many elderly people struggle to pay their heating bills and, if their boiler goes, they might not be able to afford to get it fixed, meaning they are left freezing.

“I urge people to donate to our campaign so we can help as many vulnerable people as possible.

“We would also love to hear from any plumbers up and down the country who would like to join our scheme and volunteer their time.”

Depher’s plumbers give their labour for free and receive £30 through the scheme to cover their expenses.

If any additional paid work comes as a result, 2% of the fee goes to Depher and is reinvested in the business.

People who have been helped by James Anderson have written letters of thanks to him and left comments on the Depher Facebook page.

Anyone interested in donating can visit the Go Fund Me page.