A HISTORIC town gala which was under threat of folding has been saved.

The future of Silsden Gala, which has existed in some form for over a century, had been thrown into jeopardy due to a lack of volunteers.

But following a plea by organisers, 18 new members attended the gala annual general meeting – taking the total team to 23.

David Rushworth was elected chair, and Gwendda Greaves and Sally Scales were re-elected as treasurer and secretary respectively.

The AGM – held at St James' Church community hall, in Silsden – was followed by an ordinary meeting, when retiring chair Duncan Turner outlined requirements for staging the event and planning began.

"There were plenty of suggestions for improvement from the new members and tasks were allocated to get things underway," says Mr Turner.

"It is great to see new members getting stuck into the tasks and we are hopeful of having a better than ever gala this year.

"I'm grateful to the Keighley News, and sister paper the Craven Herald and Pioneer, for highlighting the problems faced by lack of numbers."

The event takes place on July 30.

The team still welcomes more members. Anyone interested should email silsdengala@gmail.com.