FEARS are growing that a popular road race that raises thousands of pounds for charity is under threat.

Plans for the Cliffe Woods annual 10K road race, near Rochester, are on hold until the National Grid can confirm whether or not work on the new pipeline from the Isle of Grain to Shorne, in Gravesend, will affect the race route.

The event, which has been held for more than 20 years, runs from Cliffe Woods to Cooling and attracts hundreds of runners from across the country every year.

For the last nine years the fund-raising event has been organised by the Cerebral Palsy Care Centre at Bradbury House, Cliffe Woods.

Money enables the charity to continue providing free education to children under five who suffer from cerebral palsy or similar motor disorders.

Families and children also get the chance to take part in a fun run before the 10km race starts.

Organiser Keith Moon said: “We are worried because it’s one of our biggest fund-raising events and it’s money we need. Around 500 people usually enter and they raise more than £7,000.

“It costs around £2,500 to organise the race so to move it elsewhere would be costly.

“I usually start filling in permits and notifying the police and the council, as we need a road closure on the B2000 for a few minutes at the start, but I’ve had to put that on hold until National Grid tell us whether or not the work will affect the route.

“We did think about changing the date of the race but there are a number of other big races across Kent so we would have had to compete with those.

“We have provided National Grid with the route and hopefully we’ll hear from them soon.”

A spokesman for National Grid said: “We spoke to members of the Cerebral Palsy Care Centre at the memorial hall in High Halstow on Thursday .

“The aim is to try to co-ordinate the gas pipe work with the race so there’s as little disruption as possible.”

Construction work is expected to start on the pipeline in March and it will go live in early autumn.