Region’s biggest beer festival raises glass to funds success

More than 11,000 people attended the four-day festival at Magna, Rotherham to drink their way through a wide variety of 236 different varieties of Real Ales, ciders, wines and perries.

Those in charge said it will take some time for the final amounts of money raised by the festival to be calculated but said “early indications suggest that it will be a record year”.

The festival is currently in discussions with Voluntary Action Rotherham to create a new fund as a result of its success which will be used to support small local charities within the borough.

Proceeds from this year’s festival will also be donated to supporting the work of the Rotherham Hospice, Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice, Weston Park Cancer Centre, and the Magna Trust.

Speaking after the event, festival organiser Stephen Burns said: “The atmosphere inside Magna was electric and I think that a lot of people will have left with fond memories of the event.

“We receive a lot of requests for support from local charitable organisations and we are currently working with Voluntary Action Rotherham to develop a way of allowing them to access the money raised and helping to benefit the local community.

“We’re very much dependent upon the army of volunteers that have staffed the bars, giving up their spare time to help make the event work and I’d like to thank everyone who has helped.”