Family affair fundraiser makes nearly £1000

A mouth-watering stilton and wine event at Leicestershire’s Quenby Hall has raised almost £1000 for The Willow Foundation, The Children’s Society and The Venture Foundation charities.

The event was hosted by the organisers of the Midlands' first ever Family Business Awards, a not-for-profit initiative which is underwritten by family-run insurance broker and financial advisor The Wilson Organisation, based in Nottingham.

"The event was a real family affair," says Wilsons MD Charlotte Prow, "with its wine tasting run by Andrew Gillespie of family-owned enterprise Montforte Wines, and the stilton introduced by Freddie de Lisle, owner of Quenby Hall which is itself a 300-year old family business and which restarted its Blue Stilton production in 2005.

"Guests included representatives from the Family Business Awards sponsors RSM Tenon, Aviva and EFG Private Bank, as well as owners and managers of many of the region's family businesses, including Bowles Associates, Perkins Restaurant and P A Freight.

"We are delighted the event raffle raised such a significant amount of money, thanks to the enthusiastic bidding of guests for the generous and wonderful prize donations of Quenby Stilton, signed Manchester United FC memorabilia, vintage wine from Montforte Wines and tea for two at Perkins Restaurant. This monies raised will be divided between the three charities selected as the beneficiaries of the Awards."

Entries to the Midlands Family Business Awards can be made online, and free of charge, until July at www.familybusinessawards.co.uk.  The winners will be announced at the Awards Dinner on the 11th November 2010 at family-owned Thrumpton Hall near Nottingham.

For more information about the Awards, contact Wilsons' Marketing Manager Leah Bradley, tel: 0115 942 0111, email: lbradley@wilorg.com or Awards' Project Manager Hilary Campton of V Formation Limited, email: hilary@vformation.biz.

Supporters of The Midlands Family Business Awards are RSM Tenon, sponsor of the headline category - The Family Business of the Year, with other individual category sponsors including EFG Private Bank, Connect Midlands, Aviva, Young & Pearce Solicitors, AXA Elevate, Blusource, The Mitre Group, and Irwin Mitchell, with additional support from Regional Development Agency emda.

Awards categories will recognise: ‘Best development of talent', ‘Overcoming adversity', ‘Personal excellence', ‘Development of international markets', ‘Business innovation of the year', ‘Fastest growing family business', ‘Commitment to the community', ‘Leading adviser to family businesses', and ‘Best newly established family business'.