ADVENTURE seekers are being given the chance to reach new heights with a charity abseil to raise money for a lifesaving local service.

The Severn Area Rescue Association (SARA) is inviting people to come and abseil at the “stunning” Symonds Yat as a fundraiser for the charity in what is its 50th year.

Participants will be assisted to abseil down the Wye Valley cliffside by instructors from Borderlands Outdoors on Sunday, May 21, for a minimum donation to the charity of £50.

Those who would like to help the charity further by getting sponsored for the abseil are encouraged to do so by contacting [email protected].

SARA is a volunteer lifeboat and inland search and rescue charity, with seven lifeboat and rescue stations along the length of the River Severn.

They support emergency services including police, fire and rescue and ambulance services, and HM Coastguard with rescues and searches for missing persons, 24/7, 365 days a year.

In 2021, SARA wascalled out 113 times.

The independent organisation is funded entirely by donations, and all its professionally trained rescue team are volunteers.

The Symonds Yat fundraiser has been organised by the team at the charity’s HQ in Beachley.

The charity says it costs around £130,000 a year just to keep their operation going, and that is before they look at replacing any of their equipment.

Launched in Tutshill in 1973, the organisation celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, and events such as the abseil fundraiser are helping to mark the occasion.

The organisers say the activity is “physically demanding” and involves a walk along rough and uneven ground to reach the start.

Participants are asked to wear appropriate clothing and footwear, full details of which can be found online.

Spots can be reserved between 10am and 3.30pm on the day, and need to be booked in advance.

For more information and to book, go to www.eventbrite.com and search ‘Charity abseil Symonds Yat’.

Elsewhere, the Monmouth Concert Orchestra, which comprises amateur musicians from Ross on Wye, Chepstow, Abergavenny, Raglan, the Forest of Dean, and Monmouth, is hosting a concert at Usk Memorial Hall on Saturday, May 13 as a fundraiser for SARA.

More information can be found at www.monmouthorchestra.co.uk.