A CHARITY beer festival in Warrington has seen the money continue to roll in for good causes in the area.

Oktoberfest Five was organised by Warrington Rotary Club and was staged in the Parr Hall last year, much to the delight of real ale fans in the region.

But besides the wide variety of bizarrely-named beers on offer, the event was also a major fundraiser for the group and continued in the vein of the previous festivals by raising thousands of pounds.

Although the final details of exactly how much has been raised have not yet been released, the Rotary Club can confirm that around £9,000 will be going to local charities - making it the most successful Oktoberfest to date - and that £7,000 of that has already been handed out.

This brings the total raised for charity through the five festivals to more than £34,000.

Almost 1,700 visitors took part in the fun at last year's festival and they had more than 60 real ales to sample.

Preparations are already underway for Oktoberfest 2002 and a search for sponsors to support the event has begun.