Charity runners in Maidstone are desperately searching for alternative races to take part in after bosses pulled the plug on a 10k run just days before it was due to start.

Dozens of fundraisers were set to line up at Mote Park on Sunday for the much-anticipated Blitz Run but received an email on Tuesday night informing them the race had been postponed until 2019.

In the email, which recipients were unable to reply to, there was no mention of a refund for the £15 they had to pay to enter, leaving participants furious.

Furthermore, the event website was down and the contact number unreachable when organisers moved to a new, virtual office on Tuesday.

A post then appeared online yesterday indicating the race was still on, but had sold out.

By today, the post had changed to apologise for the decision and finally offer an email address to contact for refunds.

Andy Brooks, 28, of Willington Street, had already raised more than £200 for his charity, Help for Heroes, when he was told of the postponement and quickly had to look for an alternative.

He said: “It really came out of the blue, but they were blaming their investors for moving the goalposts. It felt like they were not taking any responsibility.

“If I was just doing the run for a jolly I probably wouldn’t mind but I feel like I’d be letting down the people who have donated.”

A spokesperson for Blitz Run said: “Due to a required restructure of the way the events are run, it has left us without the resources we need to run our immediate events.

“We understand that this is an inconvenience and a disappointment, however please do accept our deepest apologies and we hope you understand the matter was unforeseen.

“We are aware of runners raising funds for charities. Since the events have been postponed rather than cancelled, we are looking into the raised funds being carried forward to the postponed race dates so that your hard work and these funds are not lost for charities.”

However, Mr Brooks, who works for the emergency services, said: “I don’t think many people signed up with the intention of running in 2019.”

David Pickett, chairman of the heritage, culture and leisure committee at Maidstone Borough Council, said: “We are disappointed to hear that the Blitzrun due to take place in Mote Park on Sunday has been cancelled by the event organiser.

“We understand that a new date is being looked at in January 2019; however, a full refund is being offered for runners who are unable to commit to a future date. Anyone wishing to contact Blitzrun for further details can do so by emailing refunds@blitzrun.com with their name and email address.”