The circus came to town for Manchester as The Ivy hosted a fundraising night, raising nearly £50,000 for The Fire Fighters Charity in the process

The Ivy Circus took over the city centre restaurant, held as a way of thanking the firefighters who tackled a blaze on its roof terrace in January.

“On the night, our firefighters were quickly on the scene and were able to get the fire under control and extinguish it,” says Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue’s Assistant Chief Fire Officer Leon Parkes. “They deserve nothing but praise for their work that night and we appreciate all the fundraising that has been done as thanks.”

A circus-themed night in April celebrated the re-opening of the restaurant, complete with a circus tent, fairground rides and circus performers. Tickets were sold for £100 per person with all proceeds going to the Charity. The night was a sell-out success, with celebrities and local people in attendance.

Last week Operations Director at The Ivy Collection Laura Bamber presented a cheque for £47,000 to Leon and Charity Trustee Andrew Best.

“We are delighted to be supporting The Fire Fighters Charity, as well as with the amount raised through ticket donations,” says Laura. “We wanted to say thank you to the fire service for everything they did for The Ivy Spinningfields back in January. We are truly grateful and the work they do within the community is unfounded.”

“This is a fantastic sum of money that I know will go a long way in helping former and serving fire personnel and their families,” says Leon. “It is only down to donations like this that The Fire Fighters Charity can do their work, so I would like to thank everyone who donated and helped raise this money.”