Proceeds for last year’s Ely Folk Festival were shared between two East Cambridgeshire charities this week.

Andy Wall, chairman of the folk festival committee, presented cheques totalling £1,200 to Sheila Abbot, of Ely Home Start, and Robert Barnes, of the Lisa Barnes Memorial Fund.

Ms Abbot explained that the contribution to Home Start would assist in training support staff to work with families experiencing problems in the Ely area.

Mr Barnes said that his contribution would go towards the Arthur Rank Hospice, in Cambridge, which provided support to him and his wife Lisa in the final days of her illness.

The bulk of the contribution to the local charities was raised by Morris dancers over the 2014 festival weekend as they performed around Ely city centre.

This year’s Ely Folk Festival will support – the K9 Project. The K9 Project utilises the unique bond between humans and dogs to provide a range of support services to people of all ages.