Ridgeons has raised over £8,000 for East Anglia Children’s Hospices (EACH) in support of the charity’s EACHfest fundraising initiative.

The employees at Ridgeons’ 26 local branches across Cambridgeshire, Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire created their own local fundraising festivals in July, which were enjoyed by colleagues, customers and trade suppliers.

They held bake sales, treasure hunts, raffles, bucket collections and exercise bike challenges, to name just a few of the activities.

The top fundraising branch was Ridgeons in Pampisford, Cambridgeshire, where £1,750 was raised through sponsored shaves and leg waxing. Keith Bane, Branch Manager, who had sported his moustache for over 30 years, had it shaved off to raise funds for the charity while Bob Mortimer, Assistant Manager, also had his beloved beard of three years shaved off. Two other colleagues, Ryan Kent and Chris Laurie, bravely had their legs and eyebrows waxed.

The 26 local branches of Ridgeons have set a goal of raising £30,000 over a two- year period. The East Anglia Children’s Hospices care for 368 children and young people with a life-threatening condition and support 459 family members.

Ian Northen, Chief Executive, Ridgeons, said: “The Ridgeons colleagues in our local branches very much enjoyed raising vital funds for East Anglia Children’s Hospices during the EACHfest festival campaign. Thanks also go to all our customers and suppliers who joined in the fun and helped raise such a big amount. The branches have made an incredible start in their campaign to raise £30,000.”

Karen Newton, Fundraising Manager for EACH, said: “We are thrilled that such a big amount has been raised in such a short space of time by all the Ridgeons branches and we are looking forward to continuing our relationship with Ridgeons throughout their fundraising campaign.”