All the glitz and glamour of a Charity Ball proved to be a huge success after more than £53,000 was raised for hospice charity, ellenor.  More than 150 people attended the Gatsby themed black tie event at the Sheraton Grand, Park Lane.

Established in 1985 and serving North and West Kent and Bexley, ellenor has developed an excellent reputation for providing holistic hospice care for children and adults of all ages facing terminal illness. 90% of care is delivered in the home.

The demand for our services continues to rise and will grow even more in the future. ellenor, a charity, treats over 2,500 people every year and needs to raise

£7 million annually to maintain the ability to deliver specialist care at what is such a difficult time for those in need.

Claire Cardy – Chief Executive of ellenor says: “We all had a fantastic evening and the feedback has been exceptional. We would like to thank all our patrons, guests and everyone who has supported us. Monies raised could fund our new Children’s Team Clinical Lead role, which facilitates provision of holistic specialist palliative care, planning, education and support to both patients and families”.

Guests were welcomed by journalist and co-presenter of TV’s Location, Location, Location Phil Spencer and Good Morning Britain co-presenter and former Strictly Come Dancing star Charlotte Hawkins, both patrons of the charity.  Guests included Strictly Come Dancing’s Brendan Cole – Charlotte’s former dance partner, sculptor Guy Portelli, corporate partners Ward & Partners, Thomson Snell & Passmore, AdvoGroup, Berkeley Homes, Countryside Properties, Martin Tolhurst and Esquire Developments.

Former England Cricket Captain, Chris Cowdrey acted as auctioneer and took bids on items such as a week’s stay for eight people at Chalet Chardonneret, in Sainte Foy in the French Alps and the opportunity to join Brendan Cole and Charlotte Hawkins for lunch at the Corinthia London. 

Former Strictly Come Dancing star Charlotte Hawkins said: ‘I am so proud to be a patron of ellenor, a charity which provides such vital care for very sick children, many who have cancer. The Great Gatsby Orange Ball was a wonderful way to support this amazing cause, so reliant on funding to continue.  It was a spectacular and sparkly evening and having Brendan there to join me made it extra special.  A massive thank you as always to those who came or donated prizes”.

Other items included the opportunity for two people to join ellenor’s Patron Phil Spencer and his Location, Location, Location team for a working lunch with access to afternoon filming as well as an exclusive out of hours VIP tour of Bond in Motion at the London Film Museum..

If you would like to help provide vital support to ellenor by either sponsoring an event or fundraising on our behalf, please contact Linda Trew – Head of Fundraising on 01474 320007 or visit www.ellenor.org.

ellenor is on your timeline on www.ellenor.org, Facebook/ellenorcharity and on Twitter @ellenorcharity.