Thousands raised for children's charity at fireworks event

More than 6,000 people turned out for the Sussex Cricket Fireworks Night, presented by Domestic & General on Sunday November 5.

The cheque was presented to the charity this week, and the funds will go towards Rockinghorse’s Christmas appeal, which is raising money for the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital, as well as an X-ray imaging machine for the Trevor Mann Baby Unit (TMBU) in Brighton.

The machine will provide staff at the TMBU with instant X-ray images, allowing immediate modification of lines and tubes on premature babies who typically require multiple X-rays to be taken during their admission.

After receiving the cheque at The 1st Central County Ground, Hove, Rockinghorse’s head of fundraising, Analiese Doctrove said: “We were delighted to have been chosen as a beneficiary charity of the Sussex Cricket Fireworks Night presented by Domestic & General again this year.

“Thanks to the generosity of Sussex Cricket, Domestic & General and everyone who attended the event, we are thrilled to receive a donation of £5,250.

“This money will go a long way to support sick babies and children spending time at the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital and Trevor Mann Baby Unit in Brighton this Christmas. Thank you.”

Jackie Ashwood, cross-site operational support lead at Domestic & General’s Brighton office, said: “We’re very proud to have been part of such a fantastic event that delights our community each year and helps important charities like Rockinghorse.

“We have supported Rockinghorse for three years running, so everyone at Domestic & General is thrilled to have helped raise even more donations to support sick children across Sussex.”

Mark Judges, head of sommercial at Sussex Cricket, said: “We’re delighted to be able to support the fantastic work Rockinghorse are doing for children in Sussex via our annual Fireworks Night presented by Domestic & General.

“The involvement of such an important local charity in Rockinghorse and one of the area’s largest employers in Domestic & General - not to mention the thousands of local people in attendance each year - make this a real community event.

“A massive thank you to Domestic & General for making it possible, to their staff for volunteering to collect money for Rockinghorse on the night in such great numbers and everyone that attended for supporting this wonderful local cause. It’s thanks to them that I have the pleasure of handing over this cheque today.”