A hospice is gearing up for a series of fund-raising events with a difference – the first car boot sales in North Wales to be held in a multi-storey car park.
The sales in aid of the Nightingale House Hospice in Wrexham will take place at the car park at the town’s Eagles Meadow Shopping Centre, ensuring the weather will never be an issue.
The fully licensed events will be held on the first Sunday of every month, starting on October 1 and carrying on until next March.
Eagles Meadow manager Kevin Critchley is hoping the community events will help provide a big financial boost to the hospice, with the all the proceeds from the fee for a pitch going to Nightingale House.
Around 21 per cent of the cost of running the hospice comes from statutory funding – and they have to raise £2.8 million annually just to maintain the same level of service.
Mr Critchley said: “There is a little bit of work to be done on how the car park will be laid out to accommodate the sellers. However, allowing for two marked car park spaces for each seller it means we can accommodate around 100 pitches.
“Each seller would pay a pitch fee direct to Nightingale House and will be able to access section D of our red level car park from 7am. The car boot sale will run from 8am until 12 noon.
“We won’t be able to accommodate Transit sized vans and we can’t accept any food or beverage retailers as we have cafes and food outlets within the shopping centre.
“I know car boot sales are very popular and I have no doubt there are lots of ‘traders’ around the Wrexham area who will be thrilled to have a safe under-cover venue at which they can sell their goods.
“And with each seller paying £10 for their pitch for the day I’m hoping the events will raise a huge amount of cash for Nightingale House Hospice which is a charity that’s very close to the hearts of Wrexham people.”
He added: “I think everyone in Wrexham knows someone who has benefited from the amazing work that goes on at Nightingale House and it’s a good cause we are always keen to support in any way we can.”
Nightingale House provides specialist palliative care services, free-of-charge, to patients and their families across a wide area stretching from Wrexham, Flintshire and East Denbighshire to Barmouth and border towns including Oswestry and Whitchurch.
Services include a 12-bed inpatient ward, a 15-patient day care unit, an outpatient clinic, a specialist lymphoedema unit, occupational therapy, complementary therapies, physiotherapy including a hydrotherapy pool and an ambulance service.
In addition, a range of bereavement support services are offered including a specialist service for children and young adults.
Area fundraiser Luke McDonald was thrilled to have the support of Eagles Meadow.
He said: “We are really grateful to our friends at Eagles Meadow for selecting the hospice as their chosen charity and for the benefit we will receive from the car boot sales.
“Eagles Meadow will become the areas only ‘indoor car boot sale’. We are really excited at the prospect of the car boot sale and we are keen to see how the first event goes.
“It’s amazing that all the proceeds of the car boot sale will be donated directly to Nightingale House Hospice.”
To find out more about Nightingale House Hospice please visit www.nightingalehouse.co.uk
