A nurse has appealed for the return of her uniform, her husband’s shirts and her children’s school clothes - taken from her front porch.

Amanda Cachia had carefully folded the clothes on hangers and left them in a black sack on the porch of her home in Phoenix Drive, Wateringbury, on Monday morning ready for her ironing lady to collect.

Mrs Cachia said: “It’s what I always do if I am on duty that day and won’t be there to see her. There’s never been any problem - until this week.”

Unfortunately this time, within half an hour, the clothes had disappeared.

Mrs Cachia has been told that a company was in the area collecting clothes “on behalf of the Third World” and had left a leaflet with neighbours inviting them to put out bags of unwanted clothes for collection.

Mrs Cachia said: “Perhaps it was a genuine mistake, but I certainly didn’t intend to give the clothes away.

“I’ve tried to contact the firm, but there’s no telephone number on the leaflet.”

Mrs Cachia has reported the incident to Kent Police as a theft.