Hollyoaks stars and the people of Manchester raise £10,000 for charity
Howard Lake | 21 June 2006 | Newswire
80 people from Manchester, three Hollyoaks actors, one BBC presenter and local company Tyco Fire & Integrated Solutions helped raise over £10,500 for national charity, Action for Blind People, when they abseiled down the Printworks building in Manchester last weekend (17 & 18 June).
Hollyoaks’ Ashley Slanina-Davies, Hollie-Jay Bowes and Kieron Richardson, along with BBC North West Tonight’s Annabel Tiffin and 16 Tyco employees, abseiled the 100ft drop and raised money to help support blind and partially sighted people across the UK. Some members of the public even did it blindfolded!
Hollyoaks’ Ashley Slanina-Davies, said: My mum’s partially sighted and that’s why I felt it was so important to do the abseil for Action for Blind People.
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BBC North West Tonight presenter, Annabel Tiffin comments: It was very scary at the beginning, going over the edge, but once I got going it was great fun. It was a fabulous experience and knowing it was for such a great cause made it even more enjoyable.
Action for Blind People works to enable blind and partially sighted people to live independent lives and Manchester is home to the Manchester Actionnaires; a sports club run by Action for Blind People for visually impaired children. Action has recently expanded its services in Manchester to include an employment service, supporting visually impaired people across the area.
Natalie Elais, Community & Events Co-ordinator, comments: I would like to say a huge thank you to Annabel, Hollyoaks, Tyco and the people of Manchester. They have made a valuable contribution to Action for Blind People and we are grateful for their support.
For information on future fundraising events, people should contact Action’s Community & Events Officer, Natalie Elais, Tel: 020 7635 4888, email:
ev****@ac******************.uk
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For further media information please contact Zoe Patel, PR Officer on Tel: 020 7635 4898 or email
zo*******@ac******************.uk
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Notes to editors:
The Printworks generously allowed Action for Blind People to use the building free of charge.
In 2003 The Department of Health reported that 1,945 people in Manchester were registered blind and 1,710 had registered as partially sighted. However, not every visually impaired person registers their sight loss so the figure is likely to be higher.
Action for Blind People supports over 20,000 blind and partially sighted people in the UK every year. Action for Blind People’s National Freephone Helpline is 0800 915 4666.
Action works to inspire change and create opportunities to enable blind and partially sighted people to have equal voice and equal choice and to live a full and valuable life.
Action provides visually impaired people with opportunities through employment, housing, leisure and information and support.
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.