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Garden Centres Raises More Than £100K For Martin House Children’s Hospice



Yorkshire Garden Centres has reached a major fundraising milestone after raising more than £106,000 for Martin House Children’s Hospice since the partnership began in April 2025.


Across its seven branches, colleagues and customers have thrown themselves behind the partnership, from bake sales and raffles to running, cycling and dragon boat racing. Each branch has its own charity champion and fundraising target, while the Pennies initiative gives customers the option to add 25p to their purchase at the checkout.


Staff have taken on individual challenges, including Dry January and the Great North Run, while CEO Mark Farnsworth has organised and joined cycling challenges. Colleagues also entered two sunflower-themed teams into Martin House’s Dragon Boat Race and took part in an in-store spinathon, cycling the equivalent distance from their stores to the hospice.


Last year, the company played a major part in Martin House’s 36-hour giving challenge for THE BUILD, raising more than £7,000.


Support has gone beyond fundraising too. Staff have donated items to Martin House’s retail team, contributed prizes to the Glitter Ball auction and donated Lego to the hospice. The company has also provided table centres for Martin House Ladies’ Lunches and welcomed children and families to Christmas events and the opening of its Otley Grass Hopper play centre. The partnership will run until June 2027.


Mark Farnsworth, CEO of Yorkshire Garden Centres, said:

“Reaching more than £100,000 is a fantastic milestone and is down to the enthusiasm of our colleagues, customers and charity champions across all seven of our centres.”

“Martin House does incredible work for children and families across Yorkshire, and our teams have really embraced the partnership. Whether it’s taking on a personal challenge, jumping into a dragon boat or simply asking customers to add 25p at the till, everyone has found their own way to get involved.”


“We’re incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved together so far and look forward to continuing our support.”


Hannah Finan, Partnership Manager at Martin House, said:

“We’re hugely grateful to everyone at Yorkshire Garden Centres for reaching this incredible milestone. What makes the partnership so special is the sheer variety of ways their teams have chosen to support us. From major fundraising challenges to donations, events and welcoming the families we support, their commitment has reached right across Martin House."

“More than £106,000 is an amazing achievement and will make a real difference to the children, young people and families who rely on our care.”


Each year, Martin House supports more than 550 children and young people with life-shortening conditions, and their families, across West, North and East Yorkshire.


Its specialist teams provide care at the hospice in Boston Spa, in hospitals and in families’ own homes, including planned short breaks, symptom management, emergency care and end-of-life care.


Providing this specialist care costs Martin House around £13 million every year, with the majority coming from voluntary donations and fundraising.


For further information about Martin House Children's Hospice and how to support it, visit here.

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After a long and successful career in the construction industry, and with more than 20 years at the helm of Clegg Construction as managing director, Simon Blackburn has announced his retirement.


Michael Sims has stepped up to become MD from his previous role as commercial director, with Darren Chapman and Ross Crowcroft continuing in their roles as operations director and pre-construction director respectively.


The change in leadership comes as Clegg Construction has secured its strongest carry-forward order book, with more than £82m secured turnover for 2024.


Simon, who joined Clegg Construction in 2002, before becoming MD two years later, will remain as a group director until the end of May 2024 in support of the new generation of leadership which will take the business forward into 2024 and beyond.


“Over the last 20 years I’ve been extremely proud to lead a business that has delivered in excess of 7,000 student beds, 1,500 apartments, 1,000 care home beds, 750 hotel bedrooms and more than one million square feet of industrial schemes,” he said.


“Projects have included new builds, refurbishments, re-cladding & extensions, providing education facilities for primary, secondary, further, higher and vocational training, advanced manufacturing centres, research and development labs, offices, distribution, storage, libraries, leisure facilities, hotels, residential developments, community centres, places of worship, sports facilities, retail buildings, archives, courtrooms, the odd glulam replacement here and there, a raft ride, a cable-ski and even a crematorium."


“I am pleased to be handing over the business with a record level of carry forward workload and I congratulate Michael on his new role as managing director and wish him, and the other directors, all the best for the future.”

Michael Sims, who joined Clegg Construction in spring 2021, bringing to the business over 20 years of industry experience with key expertise in commercial and risk management and contract negotiation, paid tribute to his predecessor.


“I am proud to have been appointed to follow in his footsteps and take up the reins as the new MD for a company that is so well regarded and has such a long history."


“Alongside the other directors, I look forward to building on Simon Blackburn’s legacy and continuing to provide design and construction excellence to our clients across the country.”

Clegg Construction is a Midlands, Yorkshire and East Anglia-based construction firm specialising in the delivery of public and private sector projects. Part of Clegg Group and the sister company to Clegg Food Projects, Clegg Construction has been trading since the 1930s. Its headquarters is in the Lace Market, Nottingham. For more information visit www.cleggconstruction.co.uk


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