Category Archive for ‘News’ at Countryside La Vie Magazine

News

Garden party raises more than £1,000

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on September 25, 2008

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The pleasing total of £1,204.48 pence was raised for the Rainbows Children’s Hospice from a garden party and hog roast organised by Marion Flint of St Andrew’s Lodge, Oaks Road, Whitwick. £784.48p was raised on the day,

the rest came in from sales of rag rugs made by Mrs Flint over the year.

Attractions included a variety of stalls selling cakes, fondant fillies, hand-crafted cards and plants as well as competitions. The raffle’s lst prize, a watercolour of Mount St Bernard Abbey painted by local artist Janet Worth, was won by Mary Lee from Nuneaton.

The garden party was visited by BBC Radio Leicester’s Bridget Blair, who reported live on the event and interviewed several of the visitors.

This is the fourth year running that Mrs Flint has supported the Rainbows Hospice and over the years has raised £4,000 in support of the charity. She expressed her heartfelt thanks to her family and friends whose help on the day is invaluable.

Millionth Customer Visits Highcross

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on September 20, 2008

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Highcross Leicester welcomed its millionth customer on Wednesday 17th September after record crowds visited Leicestershire’s new £350 million retail, dining and entertainment destination.

Following a busy first two weeks of trading Highcross has now attracted more than one million people since its launch on September 4th. The flagship John Lewis Leicester continues to see a high level of footfall since opening and sales are 29% higher than expected for the first full week. Additionally, fashions and beauty continue to perform well. The Place To Eat is also proving popular with customers, with sales 52% higher than expected.

Many customers have travelled to Highcross Leicester on the hundreds of buses that have stopped at the Causeway Lane bus terminus since launch day.

In addition to the new shops, restaurants and Cinema de Lux, the crowds have also enjoyed a series of dance and music performances at Highcross. Street performers entertained visitors on launch day, and Highcross hosted several dance and musical acts as part of the city’s One Leicester, One Rhythm Dance Festival on Saturday 6th September.

Tom Nathan, General Manager of Highcross Leicester, said: “It’s amazing that one million people have now visited Highcross Leicester! Our customers have been able to indulge in retail therapy, relax in our cafes and restaurants and enjoy the latest films at the Cinema de Lux. Many people have travelled from across Leicestershire to discover what Highcross has to offer, and it has been fantastic to see how much they have enjoyed what they have found.”

For more information, please visit www.highcrossleicester.co.uk.

A Glimpse Into the Future for Open Day Visitors

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on September 17, 2008

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Visitors to our East Midlands children’s hospice, Rainbows, will be able to glimpse the future plans for extending the hospice and its facilities.

The Rainbows ‘Building for the Future’ appeal aims to raise the £4 million needed to extend the hospice. The extension will provide more professional facilities and extra bedrooms for our life-limited children and young people. Visitors who attend the open day on 20th September will be able to see a scale model of the building plans and talk to staff about what the project will mean to the people that use the services.

A scale model of how Rainbows will look was kindly constructed by students at De Montfort university of Leicester. It shows what each part of the extension will do. Dana Simons, Appeal Manager for Rainbows said “Building for the Future really is a major project for us. We are excited to have the opportunity to show local people our plans during the open day. This project means so much to Rainbows and we can’t wait until everything is completed.”

Apart from seeing the future plans, guests can walk around the beautiful gardens and enjoy stands including: a tombola, Rainbows’ shop, cakes, garden furniture, plants, refreshments and a barbeque. Everyone is welcome to come along on the 20th September. You can turn up at Lark Rise, Loughborough at any time between 10am and 3.30pm. Directions can be found on Rainbows’ website www.rainbows.co.uk or by calling 0800 952 11 33.

Highcross Leicester Attracts Record Number Of Consumers

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on September 8, 2008

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Over 125,000 Shop On First Day, The £350 million leisure and retail destination Highcross Leicester opened its doors to the public on September 4th, following two years of construction, and welcomed 50,000 visitors in its first four hours of trading.

The launch ceremony featured contortionists, acrobats, dancers and aerialists who dazzled crowds with a series of dynamic routines.

Community groups, including Hind Leys Community College and King Edward VII School, then took part in the ‘river of silk’ - a parade made up of 24 flowing silk banners - celebrating Leicester’s rich textile heritage and the day culminated with the ‘Parade Illuminaire’ incorporating an extravagant light show.

Karl Boyce, Development Marketing Manager for Hammerson said:

“The launch of Highcross Leicester has been a momentous occasion and we are thrilled with the number of visitors that have attended on our opening day. Retailer feedback has been fantastic and this marks the successful transformation of the Shires and the city centre which we have achieved after working closely with the council.

“In future months this project will undoubtedly be recognised as one of the most successful regeneration projects in the UK. Highcross will play a vital role in transforming Leicester, delivering more than 2000 jobs and a brighter future for the city.”

For further information please go to Highcross Leicester’s brand new
website: www.highcrossleicester.com

Loughborough Band On The Road To Success

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on September 3, 2008

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Up and coming Loughborough band, The Rugged SoundSystem (TRS), has taken the local Leicestershire music scene by storm and has now taken its unique brand of hip hop funk style music to London, supporting The Daves at The Borderline in Soho on Saturday 26th July.

The Rugged SoundSystem is an eclectic seven piece band and in this year alone has played major local festivals Glastonbudget and FreeFest and just last month supported the chart-topping band The Wombats at Loughborough University.

With an EP on the way, the band has spent the last six months in the studio and on the stage. Vocalist and Loughborough local Emilie Suffolk explains: “It has been a whirlwind year for the band. We started playing gigs at local pubs in Loughborough, then The Charlotte in Leicester and within six months were one of the headline acts at Glastonbudget and Freefest.

“We all thought it couldn’t get any better than supporting The Wombats at Loughborough Uni in June but then The Daves invited us to support them at their gig in London, which is an amazing opportunity for us to play to a new crowd.”

The Daves’ debut single Not for England hit the top 100 iTunes download chart earlier this month and the band has been receiving rave reviews.

The Rugged Soundsystem is hoping to play some of the late summer festivals along with more gigs across the East Midlands. Lex Baldwin, vocalist and MC explains: “Our sound is totally unique which I think is why we have built up such a strong local fan base, our influences come from many genres including hip hop, funk, jazz, soul and reggae. We now hope we have won some new fans in the capital.”

For more information about the band visit http://www.myspace.com/theruggedsoundsystem

Newby Castleman Presents Cheque for Charity

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on September 2, 2008

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Newby Castleman, one of the leading firms of chartered accountants and business advisors in the East Midlands, raised £5,000 for Rainbows Children’s Hospice at their Charity Golf Day in June

Rainbows launched their £4 million Building for the Future Appeal last year in order to raise money to extend the facilities at their Hospice based in Loughborough. Apart from organising vital fundraising events, Newby Castleman has also donated its professional business services in relation to the Appeal in order to help Rainbows achieve this massive goal.

Chris Castleman, managing partner, said “We chose Rainbows as our firm’s charity and have pledged our support to them throughout the Appeal. Over the past 18 months the cost of the advice we have given coupled with the fundraising we have organised amounts to over £31,000. My fellow partners and I are delighted with the fantastic result achieved so far and I would like to take this opportunity of thanking all our staff and clients for their generous support.”

Newby Castleman are also acting as central coordinators for the Appeal in relation to donated goods and services. Rainbows are in need of donations of a wide range of goods and services required for the construction and fitting out of the new building, as well as refurbishment and improvements to the existing facilities. This could be donations by way of building supplies, carpet fitting, furnishings … even light bulbs!!

If you think your firm might be able to help then
please contact John Griffin at Newby Castleman’s
Leicester office on (0116) 2549 262.

Apartment buying help offered in Anstey

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on September 1, 2008

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People keen to get into home ownership are offered to buy a selected apartment at Hazelton Homes’ Mill Court in Anstey, for just 75 per cent of its purchase price.

The newly launched initiative, ‘Open Door’, removes a quarter of the apartment cost, making the step into owning a property easier.

A typical example of Open Door is plot 19, a one bedroom home. Currently priced at £109,950, it would cost just £82,463 under the scheme. Buyers only need to find a mortgage for 75 per cent of the price, and the remaining 25 per cent of the open market value is paid back anytime up to resale, or within ten years.

There is no need to find a deposit, and Open Door also includes stamp duty paid and £500 towards legal fees. Selected apartments available under the scheme include one, two and three bedroom styles. Prices, before the scheme, currently range from £109,950 - £151,950.

Richard Hazelton, Hazelton Homes’ commercial director, said: “Shared equity schemes are very popular – and we’re delighted to launch Open Door – it’s easy to use and offers 100 per cent home ownership.”

Mill Court consists of 24 apartments, 18 formed in two, modern new buildings. Six have been carefully converted from a 1901 Victorian factory – The Shoe Works – offering a wealth of architectural charm. The development is a short walk from the village, which has a wide range of amenities. Leicester city centre is just four miles away, and nearby Bradgate Park is ideal for walks and cycling.

For full terms and conditions, visit the show apartment in Stadon Road,
open Thursday - Monday, 10.30am - 5.30pm. or visit www.hazeltonhomes.com

Leicester High School Skis To Success

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on August 2, 2008

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Having overcome a challenging start – when a 39-seater coach turned up to transport 57 people to Manchester Airport for the flight to Turin - a week of near perfect skiing was enjoyed by the students and staff of Leicester High School in Le Corbier in the French Alps over the Easter Holidays this April 2008. Nurse Emmerson proved a huge asset in dealing with the inevitable break, bumps and bruises! But everyone made great progress carving through the powder like quite experienced skiers by the end of the week through the excellent tuition given by ESF – the French Ski School. The trip took in not just skiing in brilliant sunshine, but also a town trail, a pizza evening, swimming in an outdoor pool – heated to 30C- surrounded by banks of snow, a disco and a trip by skiddoes to a mountain restaurant for traditional French mountain food followed by a torch-lit descent.

Leicester High School Skis To Success

Emma Formoy of Year 10 won the week’s Slalom Race defeating representatives from other schools, as well as Mrs Formoy of the Modern Languages Department and Mrs Davison of the PE Department. A healthy family rivalry now exists to reverse the placings on the next trip in Easter 2010. All the girls made use of the opportunities to practise their French by becoming regular customers of the village’s creperie and hot chocolate cafes!

www.leicesterhigh.co.uk