THIS year sees the 29th anniversary of one of the biggest fundraising events in Swindon’s calendar… and the organisers are on the lookout for businesses to make it the best yet.

To mark the 29th year of the Swindon Charity Ball, organisers are calling on 29 local firms to donate £500 each to the cause.

Thanks to Rotary International’s Global Grant scheme, every penny raised in 2018 will be match-funded, turning a £500 donation into £1,000 – the aim is for £29,000 in business donations for this year’s recipient, the Brighter Futures Radiotherapy Appeal.

The Adver has got the ball rolling by donating the first £500. Chris Moore, MD of Newsquest Wiltshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire, which publishes the Swindon Advertiser, said: “The Adver has been a supporter of the Brighter Futures appeal from the beginning and I can’t think of a more worthy recipient of the proceeds from this year’s ball.

“As an organising partner of the Charity Ball, we are happy to pledge our £500 in the hope that other businesses around the town will follow suit. It would be fantastic to know we have played our part in bringing a radiotherapy unit to the town, so that cancer patients no longer have to make the trip back and forth to Oxford.”

This year’s Charity Ball is set to be a big Bollywood bonanza, with the Swindon Marriott full of Indian song and dance when it hosts the event on May 12. Once again, the fundraising spectacular is being organised by the Rotary Club of Swindon, the Marriott, and the Swindon Advertiser.

Rob Gillespie, who has taken over chairman duties for this year’s ball, said: “This year, rather than spreading the money to several local charities, we are hoping to help Brighter Futures secure the final element of the funding. They’re looking forward to delivering the project they’ve been working so hard to achieve.

“This is an extremely worthy cause. Going to Oxford is an incredible extra burden people have to put up with when they’re ill to get the treatment they need because, at the moment, Swindon doesn’t have a radiotherapy unit. We are quietly confident that we will be able to help them.”

In its 29-year history, the Charity Ball has raised more than £790,000 for local good causes.

This year’s black-tie event will feature a champagne reception, gala dinner, Bollywood-themed entertainment, a diamond draw, silent auction, a main auction, a live band and a raffle. Tickets cost £80 per person and £800 for a table of 10. To buy tickets, become a sponsor or donate prizes, please contact Charity Ball secretary Sue Harding on susanjharding@btinternet.com or 01793 813147.