FOR the second time this year Galloway’s Society for the Blind was forced to cancel its Morecambe Bay Walk at the weekend because of safety concerns.

The walk across the bay led by Cedric Robinson MBE, Queen's Guide to the Sands, is the charity's flagship fundraising event and the cancellation means it has lost £20,000 in income.

It has held the annual walk, to collect money for local people living with sight loss, for the past 25 years and has raised in excess of £500,000.

"We had hundreds of people booked to take part in the re-scheduled walk, but on the Monday morning before the event Cedric informed us he was unable to find a route across the sands that he was happy was safe to be used," said Stuart Clayton, Chief Executive of Galloway’s. "Once again instead of making our final preparations we found ourselves on the phone, texting, e-mailing and updating social media, to ensure that all who were booked on the event knew that it had unfortunately had to be cancelled again.

“We are absolutely gutted to be in this position again. I really didn’t think that lightning could strike twice. This is only the

second occasion it has had to be cancelled in those 25 years. The whole team who have worked so hard to organise the re-scheduled walk are devastated.

"In this, our 150th birthday year, we had high hopes for the bay crossing walk. It’s our biggest fundraiser of the year and it not taking place leaves us with a massive hole to fill, somewhere in the region of £20,000.”

Cedric Robinson MBE, Queens Guide to the Sands, who has been leading people across Morecambe Bay since taking up the Guide role in 1963, said “I am acutely aware how much Galloway’s relies on the income from the walk. I am also really proud of the amount we've managed to raise together for Galloway’s over the years.

"But safety absolutely has to come first. With all the rain we’ve had over the summer and more forcast for the week before the walk, the water level in the sands was higher than we were expecting it to be. It was impossible to find a route I was happy with and sadly once again had to make the call to Galloway’s to give them the bad news”.

Anyone wanting to make a donation in lieu of the walk taking place should go to www.uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fund/GallowaysMBWAppeal