THE people of Radcliffe have been thanked for their remarkable generosity, after raising thousands of pounds in a beloved festive tradition.

Radcliffe Rotary Club’s annual Santa’s Sleigh tour collected almost £8,000 in donations in the final month of 2016.

Of the grand total of £7,987, which was also partly raised from two bucket collections at Asda Radcliffe before Christmas, £2,205 has been shared between eight local organisations who provided Santa’s little helpers for eight of the 13 nights of the tour.

Richard Dandy, club president, has praised the level of support for the yearly appeal, which comes at a time when families are already facing financial strain.

He said: “A massive thank you to all the people of Radcliffe who have supported us.

“It is only through their generous donations that we can continue to support local projects and local charities.

“At a time when people are under greater financial pressure we appreciate the continued support.”

The annual collection was not without incident this year, as Santa’s sleigh broke down on December 19 and needed a new clutch fitting.

Members of Peel Lions kindly stepped in and offered a replacement sleigh in case the Radcliffe vehicle could not be repaired in time for its next run the following night.

But thanks to the hard work of Hedley Hill, David Goldin and Barry Goldin, the former stock car racing world champion, a new clutch was sourced and fitted in record time and Father Christmas continued his journey through the streets of Radcliffe.

A Rotary Club spokesman added: “Our grateful thanks go to these heroes of the hour, without their generosity of time and effort there would have been some very disappointed children and adults.”

Among the groups who helped with this year’s collections and will each receive a share of the donations are Early Break, Bury Blind Society, and Inner Wheel.

Also set to benefit are the Giants Seat Scout Camp, and the town’s swimming, hockey, cricket, and women’s football clubs.