insideKENT Magazine Issue 57 - December 2016 | Page 16

NEWS
SPORTING STARS JOINED KENT SPORTS TRUST FOR 2016 GALA DINNER
HEVER CASTLE & GARDENS SURPASSES 300,000 VISITORS ANNUALLY
Kent Sports Trust Foundation CEO Steve Wolfe welcomed 200 guests from around the county and beyond to the QHotels Ashford International for a prestigious gala fundraising dinner in October .
Among the distinguished attendees at the Advance FM-sponsored 2016 Kent Sports Trust Foundation gala ball were a number of the foundation ' s fantastic ambassadorial team , including Winter Paralympic skiing gold medal winner Charlotte Evans MBE , England spinner James Tredwell , Kent Cricket all-rounder Darren Stevens , Team GB hockey player Ashley Jackson , and The 401 Challenge ' s Ben Smith .
The Kent Sports Trust Foundation ' s ambassadors and CEO were joined and supported at this inaugural gala dinner by the foundation ' s chairman , Paul Daniels , and board of trustee Angie Sandys .
During the evening , guests at the QHotels Ashford International raised over £ 14,500 , and were able to discover more about the Kent Sports Trust Foundation ' s objectives , and learnt of some inspiring showcase events in the foundation ' s diary for 2017 .
The Kent Sports Trust Foundation was delighted to welcome many sports associations , sports clubs , community organisations , businesses , and supporters to the QHotels Ashford International , including representatives from Medway Sport , Flip Out Chatham , K Sports , Invicta Dynamos , Maidstone R . C ., Demelza Hospice Care for Children , Nike , White Associates , Santander , Thomson Snell & Passmore , LEBC , Shepherd Neame , South East Water , Mercedes-Benz , and Brakes .
" It was fantastic to be supported by so many local companies in what was a truly incredible inaugural gala ball ," Wolfe said . " We ' re passionate as a team about getting more people active in Kent , and events such as these will enable us to do that ."
Hever Castle & Gardens in Kent reported its best 12-month visitor figures since 1997 and the first time in almost 20 years that the historic Castle welcomed over 300,000 visitors annually .
The attraction reports its annual visitor intake from 1 October – 30 September , and experienced a year-on-year increase of 7 %, welcoming 319,308 visitors in 2015 / 2016 .
Hever Castle & Gardens CEO , Duncan Leslie , said : “ The entire team works tirelessly to offer a superb visitor experience , so we are delighted to have reported such good figures . Of particular note is an increase in annual memberships purchased , up 12 %, and a raise in the number of visits by our annual members , up 17 %.”
The increase was seen across the board with greater numbers of groups , day visitors , private guided tours and bed and breakfast guests . Visits to the website were also up by 24 % on the 2014 / 2015 period .
Duncan Leslie continued : “ This success ensures that we can continue to conserve and repair the historic castle and gardens and preserve them for future generations . All profit is reinvested into the Estate and allows us to regenerate and open up new parts of the gardens that Astor created .”
Good visitor numbers have been seen by attractions across Kent , with a recent Visit Kent press release reporting a boom for tourism across the county over the summer , with visits to tourist attractions up by 18.8 % in July alone – the biggest increase year on year since 2013 .
Hever Castle & Gardens is now gearing up for what is set to be a busy Christmas season , with marketing & communications manager , Sarah Cole , saying : “ Our Christmas events have increased in popularity each year , and in 2016 our Twilight Christmas evenings sold out in record time .”
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