TESCO Chepstow has raised more than £18,000 for Diabetes UK in Wales

It is one of Wales's top three fundraising stores for the company's national charity partnership with Diabetes UK.

Their colossal fundraising has put them second out of all 169 stores across Wales. Merthyr's Tesco Extra raised the highest total in Wales with more than £27,000, while the store with third highest total was in Newport, raising over £17,000.

Tesco colleagues and customers raised the fantastic amount between March 2013 and December 2014. They have taken on all kinds of challenges and held fundraising events in stores including a sponsored head shave, a 'dance for diabetes' event, a race to the North Pole and more – all to raise money for Diabetes UK.

Nigel Cawardine, store manager at Tesco Chepstow, said: "We are delighted Tesco Chepstow Superstore is second in Wales's top three fundraising stores. It's an incredible achievement and a tribute to store colleagues' hard work. We are hugely thankful to all the customers who have dipped into their pockets to help as raise so much for Diabetes UK."

Paul Amadi, director of fundraising at Diabetes UK, said: "We are hugely thankful to all the colleagues and customers at Tesco Chepstow Superstore for their wonderful fundraising efforts. They have helped fund ground-breaking research, provide education and support programmes, as well as helping us reach people at risk of Type 2 diabetes.

"Their efforts have helped us create a lasting legacy. Funds raised will continue to offer support to many thousands of people with diabetes in the months and years to come, not to mention fund vital research that could transform people's lives."

The £18.6 million has been invested in research to develop a Type 1 diabetes vaccine, Diabetes UK's biggest public awareness campaign on Type 2 diabetes, helping 200,000 people to find out if they are at risk of getting Type 2 diabetes, supporting newly diagnosed people at Living with Diabetes Days, extending the opening hours of the Diabetes UK Careline and providing over one million people with information about diabetes.

At the start of the year, Tesco announced a new pioneering three year partnership between Diabetes UK and the British Heart Foundation that aims to raise £30 million to be spent on a series of initiatives that will help people better understand how to lead a healthy lifestyle and reduce their risk of developing Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.