Charity Afternoon Tea at The Alnwick Garden Raises More Than £10,000

The Alnwick Garden has hosted another successful fundraiser, with a luxe afternoon tea raising more than £10,000 for the garden's own charitable work. Around 100 guests were welcomed to the gardens by Her Grace Jane Percy, the Duchess of Northumberland, who created The Alnwick Garden and remains closely involved in its charitable side.

Guests arrived through a private garden entrance for a champagne reception before the afternoon tea itself. The programme also included a fashion show by Fenwick, a panel discussion with regional figures, and a charity raffle and auction, with the day drawing to a close with music and dancing.

Money stays in Alnwick

The event was organised by Luxe magazine, but the money raised goes to The Alnwick Garden charity (registered charity number 1095435), which uses the gardens to support wellbeing, learning and opportunity across the area. Much of that work is easy to overlook behind the Grand Cascade and the Poison Garden: community programmes such as Elderberries for older residents, Roots and Shoots, and Grow Into Work all sit under the same charitable umbrella. Fundraising of this kind helps keep those local projects running.

The afternoon was the idea of Luxe director Debi Coldwell, inspired by her late grandmother.

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"My grandma always said if she lived to the age of 100, she wanted to celebrate by going to The Alnwick Garden to have afternoon tea with the Duchess," said Luxe director Debi Coldwell.

It is a reminder that Alnwick's best-known visitor attraction is also a working charity, and that the crowds it draws in help fund quieter work for people across Northumberland. With plans already under way for another event next year, the garden looks set to keep hosting occasions that give back to the town as well as showing it off.

You can read the original report on the Luxe magazine website.

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