A HOSPICE has been forced to cancel one of its best known fundraising events.

Oakhaven Hospice in Lymington is blaming a dramatic drop in entries for its decision to axe Bike and Hike, which was due to take place on October 1.

First held about 15 years ago, the event is said to have reached the end of its natural life after raising more than £400,000.

At its peak it drew hundreds of entrants and netted as much as £36,000 for the hospice, which costs almost £4 million a year to run.

However, the 2016 event attracted only about 40 people and has now been cancelled amid fears it would either fail to make a profit or end up costing the hospice money.

Its demise is in sharp contrast to the success of Oakhaven’s annual Santa Dash, which has seen entries soar from 350 to 1,500 in recent years.

The hospice is already drawing up plans to replace Bike and Hike with an alternative event and hopes to release details in the next few weeks.

Mike Denny, head of fundraising, said: “It’s time to ring the changes – we’re hoping to do something very different and a bit more modern.

“Like all events, Bike and Hike had a natural life cycle, which has come to an end. The number of entries has been declining slowly but surely, and this year’s figure was very poor so we’ve taken the decision to pull the plug.

“Last year’s total was down around the £2,000 or £3,000 mark.

“It was still making a contribution but had it gone ahead this year we might have ended up in a position where it either wasn’t raising funds for the hospice or was actually costing us money.”

Mr Denny said Bike and Hike had attracted as many as 600 entrants at the height of its popularity.

He added: “Things move on and people look for other things to do. The number entering our Santa Dash in Lymington has gone from 350 to 1,500, so that’s clearly on the up.

“Like a lot of other people we are constantly having to re-invent ourselves.”

Oakhaven costs £3.7 million a year to run, of which only 11 per cent is provided by the NHS. The rest comes from donations, legacies and fundraising events.