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Ho, ho, ho for Noel

The festive season provided an ideal opportunity for Rickard Keen to support local good causes as part of its
ongoing commitment to corporate responsibility. On 19 November, partner Noel Kelleway dressed as Santa to take part in SouthendonSea's Christmas Parade and lights switchon, travelling in a sleigh pulled by real reindeer for a parade led by a marching band and including a 20ft high genie and other characters from forthcoming Cliffs Pavilion panto Aladdin.

After a live interview on BBC Radio Essex, Noel was joined on stage in Southend’s High Street by the Mayor of SouthendonSea, Councillor David Norman, and Heart Radio presenters Martin Day and Su Harrison as he and Widow Twankey teamed up to turn on the Christmas Illuminations. He described it as “an experience I’ll never forget”.

Hosting Christmas carol concerts are an annual tradition at Rickard Keen and this year’s events took place on the evenings of 13 December, at St Martin's of Tours Church, Basildon, and 14 December, at Crowstone St. George’s URC, WestcliffonSea. Both were led by the Southend Brass Band, which was joined
by members of the Southend Young Singers at Basildon and Southend Girls’ Choir at WestcliffonSea.

The concerts supported Southend Hospital Charitable Foundation Bosom Pals Appeal on the Road and the Basildonbased Burned Children's Club.

The two concerts raised a total of £2,877, which will be shared by Rickard Keen’s charities and Essexbased
St Luke’s Hospice, the chosen charity of Palmers Solicitors, with whom Rickard Keen has teamed up to hold the Basildon concert since 2007. The organisers of Southend’s lights switchon donated £150 to Noel's chosen charity, the town’s Homeless Action Resource Project (HARP).