CARING IN CREWE De Vere, a collection of historical mansion-house estates and contemporary hotels, which includes popular local wedding venue Cranage Estate in Crewe, has donated £560,696.69 to NHS Charities Together to help NHS staff, volunteers and patients at the centre of the Covid-19 pandemic. Locally, NHS Charities Together has helped the Mid Cheshire Hospitals Charity, which supports the Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust by providing funding for state-of-the-art equipment and new facilities, as well as East Cheshire NHS Trust Charitable Fund, which supports Macclesfield District General, Congleton War Memorial Hospital and Knutsford and District Hospital. Alan Corlett, chief commerial officer at De Vere says, “We’re always looking for ways to support our local communities and charities close to our heart. We’re honoured to be able to make this significant donation to NHS Charities Together to say ‘thank you’ to those who’ve looked after us and kept us safe throughout the pandemic.” To find out more about saying “I do” at Cranage Estate, head over to www.devere.co.uk/cranage-estate LEADING THE ENVIRONMENTAL WAY In 2015, Gemma Wakerley took the decision to reduce the environmental impact of her business, Booker Flowers and Gifts. At the time it was quite a radical move given the green agenda we take for granted today was still in its infancy. Fast forward to 2022 and her business in Mossley Hill is the proud recipient of the Environmental and Climate award in the Liverpool Chamber Innovation in Business Awards. Over the years Booker Flowers and Gifts has introduced numerous measures to reduce its carbon footprint and environmental impact including everything from using renewable energy suppliers and reducing plastic waste, to sourcing local produce where possible and returning cardboard packaging to suppliers. Gemma says, “ I was always interested in the environment and made the decision to do my bit to help preserve and protect it. In the beginning, there wasn’t as much information available, so it was a steep learning curve, but we persevered, and step by step we’ve made great progress. There’s still much to do but we’re working with Liverpool John Moores University and others to improve green composting processes and have ambitions to go electric with our delivery vehicles in order to achieve net zero by 2030.” Find out about Booker Flowers and Gifts wedding services at www.bookerflowersandgifts.co.uk COME ON IN The owners of Soughton Hall in Sychdyn near Mold have invested £300,000 to open an exciting new wedding and events venue on the the 10-acre estate. The conversion of the Grade II listed coach house and stables has been a labour of love for managing director James Ramsbottom who says, “The Coach House was an amazing piece of bricks and mortar that was sat here doing nothing, having been operated as a restaurant by the previous owners. It was a waste to have a Grade II listed building without a real purpose, but now we’ve put that right. We’ve breathed new life into it, while retaining many of the original features. The Coach House is now available and we have already started accepting bookings. It will work well alongside the Hall since it offers something different, but equally special in its own way.” Soughton Hall is very much a community-based venue that aims to contribute as much as possible to the local economy, so with that in mind fresh local produce is used in all the meals it serves. And although all of the menus from the Hall will be available in the new location, the fare you can expect to find at the Coach House will be high-end classics with a cool twist. The Hall itself was built in 1720 before being redesigned a century later by Sir Charles Barry, who went on to be the architect of the current House of Commons and Highclere Castle (the iconic location for Downton Abbey). The Coach House is available to host a range of weddings from traditional seated meals for up to 80 guests and evening receptions for up to 200. Find out more at https://soughtonhall.co.uk Liverpool Chamber 10
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