TWO charities have each received over £1500 thanks to the success of a ball organised by friends Lez Collins and Julie Webber at the Hobby Horse in Minehead.

Previous balls organised by Julie, Lez and their friends had already raised just over £30,000 and this was their sixth black-tie event – and their last.

But the pair have vowed to continue to raise money for local charities and will be looking at new ideas: “We would like to thank everyone who has supported us in the past and we hope you will continue to do so in the future,” said Lez.

This year’s ball on September 24 brought the balls’ total to £35,000, including £3,144.88 raised on the night to be equally divided between SURE and Minehead RNLI - £1572.44each.

Another £1750 was received in donations specifically for SURE, giving a grand total for this year’s event of a whopping £4,894.88.

This year’s ball featured local band Rough Justice with DJ and compere Clive Smith. All raffle and auction prizes were donated free of charge, along with the venue, catering and entertainments.

Pictured from the left are Lez Collins, Phil Sanderson, John Higgie, Seila Tutt, Julie Webber and Carole Summerfield.