AN event which saw a 12th century North Yorkshire Abbey bathed in lights has raised £6,400 for a local hospice care charity.

At the end of October Jervaulx Abbey, near Masham, was lit up for four nights. Described as ‘a celebration of life with lights’ the walls of the country’s largest privately-owned and maintained Cistercian Abbey were illuminated with various colours, with people paying an admission to view them. There was also music, food and refreshments.

The owners of the Abbey, the Burdon family, have donated all the money raised from the event to Herriot Hospice Homecare. This is in recognition of the care the charity gave to a family friend, Wendy Irvine, before her death in June this year.

Ian Burdon, who owns the Abbey with his wife Carol and their daughters Anna and Gayle, said: “Wendy died from a virus after bravely fighting lymphoma and Herriot Hospice Homecare provided great support to her and her husband Dave and son George.

“We first staged Jervaulx in lights in 2017, so when we were planning this year’s event, we knew we wanted Herriot to be the beneficiary.

“Around 1,000 people came to the Abbey over the four nights, and we would like to thank everyone for being so generous."

Tony Collins, chief executive of Herriot Hospice Homecare, said: "We are exceptionally grateful that the Burdon family chose to support Herriot Hospice Homecare through the spectacular Jervaulx in Lights event.

"It costs Herriot almost £1m each year to offer vital services which include end of life care, bereavement support, befriending, respite and driving support.

“This year Herriot will once again be a part of Christmas for so many local families, and this amazing contribution will help us to offer care, support and comfort so that people living with a terminal illness and their families can make the most of precious time together.

“We simply could not continue to provide this very special care without the support of the communities we serve in Hambleton and Richmondshire, and this donation of £6,400 is a great example of local people coming together to make a real difference.

“I would also like to thank our wonderful Herriot volunteers for their contribution in making the event such a success.”