TWO charities which tried to save the life of a woman on a Devon beach have thanked her family for donating cash to their causes.

Money collected at the cremation service of Jayne Holmes will go to the Devon Air Ambulance and the Exmouth Beach Rescue Club.

Both were thanked by Laura Holmes from Exeter, the niece of the dead woman.

Miss Holmes, who was in her 60s and believed to come from the Exmouth area, was paddling in the sea when she collapsed on Sunday.

Her heart had stopped beating and volunteers belonging to the Exmouth Beach Rescue Club, who were on a training exercise, rushed to her aid.

Club leader Nigel Snowshall, 43, and fellow volunteers administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation. They had got her breathing by the time the air ambulance arrived, but Miss Holmes died on Tuesday at the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital.

Her niece said the funeral service will be at Exeter Crematorium on Thursday at 12.15pm.

"Donations will be given to the beach rescue club and the air ambulance," she said.

Mr Snowshall, who is also an Exmouth firefighter, said they did everything they could to try to save Miss Holmes.

"It is a lovely thought to donate some of the proceeds at the funeral service to our club," he said.

"We are very grateful, though very much regret the circumstances that this has come about.

"The family can be assured that this donation will go towards helping people and to saving lives.

"We are sorry Miss Holmes did not survive, despite the efforts by everyone involved. All our members were sad to hear of her death.

"We are a voluntary organisation and depend on our own fundraising and public donations, so every penny helps."

Caroline Creer, of the Devon Air Ambulance, thanked the family.

She said: "We are always very humbled when we receive donations in lieu of flowers from funeral services."