The organisers of the Buckfest Music Festival presented cheques totalling £8000 to local charities and groups at their annual ‘thank you’ party.

This year’s total is the largest amount that the festival, held at the Buckden Village Club in July, has donated in its eight-year history.

Nominated charities for 2017 were Tommy’s Wheels and the Acorn Cancer Support Group, which received £2,000, and a donation of £2,000 was also made to Buckden Village Club to purchase new furniture for the bar areas. Donations were also made to Buckden Explorers, Buckden FC, Buckden Village Hall Trust and Buckden Pre-School which all support the festival each year.

Tommy’s Wheels - a Buckden based charity - was started to support Tommy Laws, 32, who has recently become a double amputee. The charity aims to support other amputees in the future.

Katherine Millen, from Tommy’s Wheels, said: “The donation from Buckfest has made a huge difference to Tommy’s quality of life as we have been able to purchase a much-needed mobility scooter and start fundraising for a pair of legs and running blades.”

Simon Townend, Acorn Cancer Support Group chairman, said: “This wonderful donation will ensure that Acorn can continue its mission of helping alleviate the emotional and physical distress of cancer patients and their carers in the local area.”

Acorn holds regular meetings to offer support to those with a cancer diagnosis and believes “no-one should feel lonely and isolated during their pathway through cancer”. Buckfest’s cheque means specialist therapists employed at the group meetings can continue and more days out for patients and carers are now being planned.

Rick Holden, chairman of the Buckfest committee said he felt “very proud of what the festival had achieved” and thanked everyone who had been involved in this year’s festival.

Next year’s festival will be held on July 14, but details of line-up and tickets will be announced nearer the time.

INFO: www.tommyswheels.org.uk and www.acornsupportgroup.co.uk. If you would like to be involved with Buckfest, visit: www.buckfest.org.