Members of the Hythe Pier heritage association celebrated after the end of the first stage of its fundraising campaign.

The £20 challenge saw community members sign up to any task, paying £20 towards the fund to help save the pier.

Between February 23 and March 19, supporters walked up and down the pier for three hours, completed 21 triathlons and the younger generations stayed silent for 24 hours.

The overall target of £20,000 is aimed to be reached in stages, with a prize draw for those taking part.

Peter King, chairman of the heritage association said: “There’s so much heritage here and we’re desperate to preserve that.

"This challenge is an inspiration of other fundraisers and it’s certainly given us some impetus.

“It’s attracted more attention for us and we’re here celebrating today because of that. This was open to all age groups and abilities, and the £20 target was so that anybody could turn around and say ‘I can manage that’, and encourage them to take part.

"The fundraising is going very well, and this challenge isn't over yet. I very much enjoyed my challenge and hopefully these type of ideas are just getting started."

Vic Carter, fundraising team leader, said: “Everybody has really enjoyed themselves with this and has come up with some brilliant ideas on how to raise money.

“We have drawn a meal for two at different restaurants and a free MOT so anyone can say that they had a helping hand in saving this pier. We’re going to fight on with this as hard and as loud as we can.”

The money raised is set to cover structural surveys of the pier, charity start up fees and organisational costs.