ORGANISERS of this year's grand charity walk have hailed it a great success after thousands of people took part to raise at least £78,000 for good causes.

And the final total when all the cash has been counted could even break the magical £100,000 barrier.

The walk, organised by Church and Oswaldtwistle Rotary Club with the backing of the Observer, took place in beautiful weather on Sunday.

Around 1,200 people put their best foot forward, including 200 youngsters who were able to participate for free.

They made a magnificent spectacle as they set off from the Dunkenhalgh Hotel, Clayton-le-Moors, and walked 10 miles along the Leeds-Liverpool Canal towpath, ending at Thompson Park, Burnley.

The numbers were way up on last year's inaugural walk, which saw 650 people taking part for a variety of good causes including charities and sports clubs.

The route is planned by Rotarians, who provide stewards along the way, but apart from a small entry fee to cover costs every penny raised goes to the walkers' own good causes.

Among those taking part was soap star Julie Hesmondhalgh who plays Coronation Street's Hayley Cropper.

Hyndburn MP Greg Pope was also on hand to help Franco Sanna, president of Church and Oswaldtwistle Rotary Club, give out certificates to those finishing the course.

Franco said: "We had far more walkers than last year and it was a great success. The weather was beautiful which really helped and we couldn't have asked for more.

"Everything went really smoothly and we had improved on the organisation to make sure it went better than ever.

"But we wouldn't have been able to do it without the publicity provided by the Observer."

Among the charities and good causes to benefit are Macmillan Cancer Relief, the North West Air Ambulance, the NSPCC, the Samaritans and the East Lancashire Hospice.