A SUPERMARKET employee who was told to ‘shut up’ by her manager during her shifts has raised £400 for charity.

Chatty Tesco worker Sarah Moore signed up to run the Cancer Research Race for Life at Hopetoun House this month – but decided to push herself even further and take on a bigger challenge.

The 27-year-old from Innerleithen says her line manager, Amy Henderson, came up with the idea of a sponsored silence.

“I think Amy saw an opportunity to keep me quiet, and she took it,” laughed Sarah.

“I’m going to be doing the Race for Life, but I am well aware that there is a chance that I won’t manage running the whole race, and if I walk most of it, it’s not going to bring in the big bucks.

“So we brainstormed some ideas of how I could raise money and do my bit, and the obvious one for someone that talks to the extent that I do, was a silent shift.”

Initially, Sarah intended to do just one three-hour shift in silence at the Peebles store – but this was quickly extended to three shifts.

“When Amy suggested it, I thought it would be a good laugh and, of course, it’s for a great cause,” she said.

However, the very same week of her sponsored silence, Sarah was diagnosed with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).

She told us: “For me, and I guess a lot of people with ADHD, it was very challenging. I am exceptionally chatty, so staying silent for three shifts was really difficult.”

Sarah didn’t have much faith in herself to keep quiet.

And she even went to great lengths to make sure she didn’t utter a word.

“I tried wearing a piece of pink duct tape over my mouth on the first day just to ensure I didn’t talk,” she said. “I gave up on that because it was too hot and uncomfortable.”

As Sarah works on the shop floor, dealing with customers proved challenging.

She said: “My colleague tannoyed in the store throughout my shifts to say I was doing a sponsored silence and encouraged customers to wind me up and get a bit of a reaction, and put some money in my bucket.”

Sarah said customers approached her for assistance much more than usual.

She added: “I got a whiteboard and was able to communicate with that. I tried miming and just taking people to what they were looking for. Some customers knew what I was doing but for those that didn’t, I can only imagine what was going through their heads.”

Asked if there were any moments she thought she would break her silence, Sarah replied: “Oh yes, definitely, I was very worried that I would. Everyone in the store got involved, and there was a lot of cheek along the way, but it was all in good fun.

“I’m into politics, so a lot of people had political stuff to say. It was good and pushed me that little bit further and made it feel like a challenge.

“Although I only work a few hours, I bring quite a lot to the team with conversation, and I think everyone felt it, especially that first shift.”