A Haworth man has distributed the £7,200 proceeds of his head and beard shave to charity.

Maurice Baren has split the money equally between Action for Children, Yorkshire Cancer Research and SOS Sahel, which works on environmental and community issues in Sudan.

Rotarian Mr Baren presented two cheques at the Keighley club’s meeting on Monday to Gill Smith, of Action for Children, and Mary Parker, of Yorkshire Cancer Research. The third cheque is being sent to the SOS Sahel HQ in Oxford.

The total from last September’s event included £1,188 in gift aid.

Mr Baren, 75, who battled against colon cancer several years ago, said: “It's amazing what such a simple thing as a head shave can do when you can get your friends to be so generous – £7,200 should really be able to make a difference in the hands of such reliable charities. I would like to thank everyone who gave their support.”

The head shave, at West Lane Baptist Church in Haworth, was his fifth for charity. Together they have raised about £25,000.