Local Charity Set To Benefit As Irwin Mitchell Charity Of The Year

Colleagues at the Leeds office of Irwin Mitchell had a real hoot recently, raising a glass or two courtesy of a local gin distillery and over £1,170 for their 2019 Charity of the Year in the process.

Organised by trainee solicitor Lauren Cooper, over 30 members of staff and external contacts attended a gin tasting event, hosted by Barnby Moor based gin distributor, Hooting Owl Distillery, to raise both a glass and money for Leeds based Special Needs and Parent Support (SNAPS)

An auction for a tour of the distillery helped to raise money on the night, which together with ticket sales and raffle prizes contributed to the final total. The distillery donated 10% of sales on the night to the total, all in aid of a great local charity that relies on donations for support.

SNAPS provide leisure support services for children with additional needs of all kinds and their families. They aim to support the entire family, by enabling them to participate in shared physical activity in relaxed surroundings, supported by professional, dedicated staff.

Leeds office staff nominated SNAPS as their 2019 Charity of the Year as part of the Irwin Mitchell Charities Foundation (IMCF). The IMCF initiative has already donated over £2 million to UK good causes since it was founded in 1997; and £284,000 in 2018 alone.

This latest fundraising effort by the Leeds office follows a 12 mile sponsored walk in September, where 30 staff rasied over £2,700 for SNAPS.

Sanna Mazhar, a solicitor from the Leeds office and member of the IMCF, said: “Gin tasting made a change from a 12 mile walk but it was a fantastic event and well supported by colleagues. Lauren did a great job and I want to thank her for organising the night and the distillery for an entertaining and informative evening and all for a charity that does great work in the community.

The whole office is committed to raising as much money as we can for SNAPS this year and we are very confident that with this event and others we have planned in the run up to Christmas that we can better the £4,000 we raised for the charity in 2018.”

Based at Barnby Moor House, the Hooting Owl Distillery sells several of its own craft gins and offers a range of services and events, from the creation of bespoke gins and gin schools to tasting evenings like the one held at Irwin Mitchell.

Eve Holdsworth, Community Fundraising Manager for SNAPS, said: “The Irwin Mitchell team come up with all sorts of ideas for raising money and we are grateful for their efforts. Every penny we receive goes towards helping children and their families in our region and makes a real difference to people’s lives.”