A FUNDRAISING Christmas fair that has raised thousands of pounds has topped its previous record.

The NSPCC Christmas fair at Castle Howard, which has been held for the last 10 years, raised £55,000, more than £15,000 on its previous record. Support this year’s was provided by Nick Hewer from The Apprentice.

Harriette Murray Wells, joint chairman of the organising committee, said: “We are overwhelmed with the support we received this year in helping us raise such a huge amount of money for the NSPCC.

“We wanted to grow our Christmas fair and this year took a big step forward to extend it to a three day event and also, crucially, we opened on a Saturday for the very first time.

“We also benefitted from celebrity support this year in the form of the BBC’s Nick Hewer as he visited the fair and lent his official backing and this greatly raised our profile.”

This year the NSPCC Christmas Fair had a total of 66 stalls, with income from ticket sales, raffle tickets, sponsors and donations, and 10% of each stall holder’s takings all going direct to the charity. Funds raised by the Fair help provide NSPCC services for children and families in the North Yorkshire region as well as across the UK.

Mrs Murray Wells said they were very grateful to the Howard family and Castle Howard staff for supporting their decision to extend the event. “Saturday saw good visitor numbers which increased our sales figures and ticket purchases to make it well worth the extra effort from our army of volunteers and supporters to open up for a third day,” she added.

Mrs Murray Wells said: “Thank you to everyone who came to our fair and to our generous sponsors, including the Rowse Family Trust, JM Finn and Co Investment Management, TATE Residential, Rogers of York, The Feathers Hotel, in Helmsley, and The Orangery, in Settrington.”