Workington Rotary Club is due to elect its first female president.

Patricia Hoggarth, 57, of Seaton, will start her one-year term on July 1.

Mrs Hoggarth, originally from Malaysia, has been a member of the Rotary club since 1993 and has already been president of a Malaysian branch of the club.

She said: "I'm honoured and humbled by the trust that the members have in me that I can lead a club so well established. I'm really looking forward to my year as a president.

"I consider myself very fortunate because I was a president in Malaysia some 17 years ago, not many people have a chance to be president twice."

The Workington branch, which was established in 1929, is due to hold the installation ceremony tonight Wednesday, June 22, at the Hunday Manor Hotel, Winscales.

Mrs Hoggarth, who married Alan, also a member of the Rotary club, in 2012, said: "We're not a charitable organisation, we are a service organisation who works with the local community.

"Rotary gives ordinary people an opportunity to be a service to the community. It's very difficult when you are on your own to make a difference, but with a club behind you you can go much further.

"I think the club has given me more than I have been able to give in all these years. You always think that you don't have as much as someone else, but the Rotary has exposed me to some communities that have so much less and it makes you realise that you have a lot to be grateful for."