The popular fundraising Beacon to Beach Fun Run will have new organisers this year - Gateway Events, a group of volunteers in the town who fundraise and put on events for the community.

The Minehead and Quantocks Rotary Club have been running it for the last 15 years, having taken over from the West Somerset College PTA which set up the run in 1979.

This year’s event will take place on July 14 and will finish with a celebration in Blenheim Gardens rather than at the college as in the past.

Ivan Jones, who has been race secretary since Rotary took over the event in 2004, said the run had raised more than £30,000 for its nominated charities in that time, in addition to runners’ own chosen charities.

He told the Free Press: “2018 was the 40th anniversary of the run and, although it was very successful and as popular as ever, there has been an increasing number of issues over recent years regarding administration, marshalling the course and health and safety issues among other things that have resulted in the main organising individuals in Minehead Rotary feeling that changes to the organising of the run were necessary.

“With this in mind, they also felt that after 15 years it was a good time to step aside and let someone else take the reins and give help and assistance where required.”

Gateway Events chairman Bill Howard said: “Over the years Rotary have done an amazing job, building this much loved event up to the huge success it has become.

“We are delighted that, following recent discussions between Rotary and ourselves about the future of the event, agreement was reached that Gateway will now carry it forward.”

He said any surplus money raised would be put towards developing Minehead Christmas Festival.

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