SWANAGE Carnival committee has honoured current members who have given more than 25 years of service.

The groups latest meeting marked the first time the carnival committee has handed out the long service badges, which were awarded to 11 members.

The badges were presented by chairperson Maria Foot.

Maria said: “I am very proud to have been able to acknowledge the time and dedication these members have given in their voluntary role for Swanage Carnival.”

The committee’s longest serving members to win an award were Dave Terrett, who has volunteered for Swanage Carnival for 44 years, Laurence Sprigg, Diane Terrett, Anne Tomes, Biddy Hardy, Andi Byrom, Roger Crabb, Marcus Lambert, Keith Dixon, Tricia Thompson and Brian Norman, the current president of Swanage Carnival, who has volunteered for a total of 32 years.

The roots of Swanage Carnival date back more than 200 years and today it is one of the few remaining traditional carnivals on the south coast.

A spokesperson for the event said: "Although we pride ourselves in maintaining long standing traditions of carnival, we have also had to work hard to introduce changes in more recent years.

"Making carnival relevant to new generations, meeting new requirements and most importantly ensuring that carnival continues for many more years to come.

"Many visitors to our events do not know (or believe) that carnival is self-funded and organised by volunteers.

"We rely on generous donations from a number of local business and individuals to sponsor our more than 100 events.

For this reason community is at the heart of Swanage Carnival and our thanks go to everyone who has supported us over the years."