After endless weeks of lockdown, some are missing the beer garden more than others – and have created a fundraiser from that very fact.

Former Frizington man Ryan Dodgson has kicked off the thirst-quenching fundraiser, Neck Nominations, to get people raising money for vital Covid-19 support groups while still "having a laugh".

And the 34-year-old is over the moon with the response, raising over £5,600 for charities and support teams throughout West Cumbria.

He said: "I started the neck nominations because I like a beer, and it was a good excuse to have a pint and cheer people up with a laugh while raising money as well."

The Neck Nomination includes drinking a pint of beer without stopping first thing in the morning, and nominating others to do the same, donating money when you've completed the task.

"I just thought to myself, 'what can I do to help', and it seemed a good idea to get people nominating five people each – it's got the nominations spreading across West Cumbria, which is great."

The impressive – and growing – £5,611 has been split between various groups, including; Distington Friends not Foes, Cleator Moor Covid-19 Support Group, Maryport Community Emergency Response Group, Mirehouse Matters, Copeland Age and Advice Service, and funding PPE for frontline workers.

Helping others is no new task for the now-Workington man, as Ryan is also part of the Frizington Covid-19 Support Group, with Richard Taylor, Siobhan Dixon and Joanne Jeynes.

The dedicated team have been supporting the community any way they can, delivering everything from prescriptions and necessities to pies, peas and gravy to the elderly over the VE Day weekend.

Ryan added: "I'm used to working overtime and over weekends, so doing all this and helping the community is the only thing keeping me occupied and keep me from cracking up!

"Thank you to everyone for joining in and raising money, and hopefully we can spread it across Cumbria.

"This is all for the support groups, and for anyone struggling – if there's anything they need, just contact any of the groups and you'll get help."

To support Ryan's fundraiser, visit his GoFundMe page at www.gofundme.com/f/west-cumbria-covid19-support.