Great Chesterford Charity Ball raises over £15,000 for Help for Heroes

April 27, 2010 - PRLog -- A charity ball, organised entirely by volunteers and supported by a number of local companies and individuals has raised over £15,000 for Help for Heroes.

The ball, which took place in Great Chesterford on Saturday April 24th, was supported by over 300 guests who enjoyed a champagne reception, followed by dinner and a charity auction.  A live band followed and dancing continued well into the night.  The entire evening was compared by BBC Radio Cambridgeshire’s morning presenter, Andie Harper.

Brief speeches by Major Matt Davies and Adjutant of 33 Engineer Regiment Captain Richard Roberts from Carver Barracks near Debden gave the guests some insight into the lives of British servicemen and women abroad. A further insight into the work of Help for Heroes was given by Robert Altham, local spokesman for the charity.

The highlight of the evening, the charity auction, saw a number of lots all of which were donated by local companies and individuals going under the hammer.  Some of the more unusual items sold included:

•   Signed riding breeches from Frankie Dettori and Kieran O’Fallon which raised a total of £490.00
•   A knee consultation with a top orthopaedic surgeon which raised £220.00
•   RAF and Army Help for Heroes teddy bears which raised a total of £440.00

Among the other items on offer were holidays, trips and tours and signed sporting goods.  The highest bid item was a week in a villa in Ibiza which went for £2,200.00

Katherine Maguire, Park Manager at Chesterford Research Park commented of the evening:  “We have been delighted to join other local companies in support of such a good cause.  The evening has been a fantastic success and congratulations must be given to the local organisers who planned every detail from start to finish in meticulous detail”.

Help for Heroes (http://www.helpforheroes.org.uk) was founded by Bryn and Emma Parry in October 2007 out of a desire to help the wounded Servicemen and women returning from Afghanistan and Iraq. The charity is strictly non political and non critical, believing that that anyone who volunteers to serve in time of war, knowing that they may risk all, is a hero.

Chesterford Research Park (http://www.chesterfordresearchpark.com) is a thriving community made up of innovative, world-class R&D companies.  Looking to expand on the success of the Park to date, the joint venture partners, Aviva Investors and Churchmanor Estates Company Plc are pushing development plans forward to increase the facilities available to new occupiers.  Planning permission has been granted on both the Robinson Laboratory and the Science Village development and the joint venture partners remain keen to push these projects forward during the coming months.

Representing the ultimate in flexible design, the Robinson Laboratory will provide two separate wings of laboratory space, linked by an elegant atrium designed to house an impressive reception area and a versatile range of meeting rooms.  As always at Chesterford significant thought has also been given to the external finish of the building, with sympathetic landscaping of the immediate area adding to the overall aesthetic.

The Science Village development is a low energy building which will allow for flexible use as R&D offices and/or laboratory suites.  The occupancy options range from a single approximately 28,000 sq ft net internal area occupier to 16 individual suite occupiers - 8 at approximately 1,510 sq ft and 8 at approximately 1,965 sq ft.

# # #

About Chesterford Research Park: Chesterford Research Park is being developed as a 250 acre low density scheme to provide high quality accommodation in an attractive environment for science and technology based companies of all sizes. To date, more than 215,000 sq ft of laboratory and R&D space has been let and occupied or is reaching practical completion. Further phases of construction will extend the development to approximately 600,000 sq ft (56,500 sq m). The park is being developed as a joint venture between Aviva Investors and The Churchmanor Estates Company Plc. http://www.chesterfordresearchpark.com