A BIG fundraising event planned in Colchester for the Help for Heroes charity has been called off.

The Weekend for Heroes, was to have seen two big concerts, a gala dinner and an auction staged at the Weston Homes Community Stadium next month.

Now the team of 20 volunteers planning the event has been forced to cancel it, because it was looking unlikely to raise enough money to make it worthwhile.

Leading organiser June Day explained: “It would have been a fantastic event, but there were a few problems we came across we just couldn’t get around.

“The event was about raising money and when we realised it wasn’t going to get the sums we wanted, we decided it was best to cancel.”

Mrs Day, who has family connections to the Army, praised the hard work put in by those involved in planning the event.

She added: “You have to try these things, but this idea just didn’t work out.

“Now we will keep working to raise money for such a worthwhile cause in other ways.

“It was not that Colchester didn’t show its support, as can be seen by the £15,500 raised by a cake sale in town recently.”

More cash is due to come from a two-week exhibition by award-winning photographer Gill Shaw, but the final tally has yet to be counted.

One of the projects supported by Help for Heroes is a planned specialist recovery centre for wounded troops at Colchester Garrison, now due to open next year.