Organisers of Cirencester's Relay for Life are looking for more teams to enter to help smash their fundraising record.

The challenge, which raises funds for Cancer Research UK is encouraging family, friends and work colleagues in Cirencester to get together and enter teams of between eight to 15 people to take part in fundraising activities such as karaoke, quizzes, supermarket bag-packs, charity balls.

Cirencester's relay has raised £200,000 in the last two years, a figure they hope to eclipse this time around.

After the relay challenge, teams will then be invited to take part in an overnight relay at South Cerny Airfield on Saturday, July 27 to celebrate their fundraising achievements.

During the relay itself, team members take it in turns to walk round a track while everyone else enjoys the carnival atmosphere.

As the event continues non-stop through the night, team members not on the track can rest in their tents.

As dusk falls the specially made Candle of Hope bags - decorated with touching messages in memory or in celebration of loved ones - are filled with sand and lit up with candles around the track and glow long into the evening.

Sharon Scrivens, volunteer Chair of Cancer Research UK’s Relay For Life in Cirencester, said: “Relay For Life is a great way to spend time with your family, friends and colleagues while raising money for a truly worthwhile cause.”

“One in two people in the UK will be diagnosed with cancer at some stage in their lives. Taking part in Relay For Life is about being part of a community united in the belief that it can make a difference. Cancer Research UK needs everyone in Cirencester to act right now.

“We have made so much progress in the fight against this devastating disease, but it’s not just technology or knowledge that we need to win the battle to beat cancer– it’s funding. I lost my beautiful boy to Maligant Melanoma when he was just 24 years old, and lost my father when he was just 60, to another form of this cruel disease.

"In the last two years, we’ve raised over £200,000 which is incredible for a town of this size. What a great town we live in and we want to smash that record this year, so come and join us."

For more information about Relay For Life visit cruk.org/relay or call 0300 123 1026