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We have turned festive gifts generously given to us from customers and suppliers into a late Christmas present for a children’s charity.
The array of goodies included multiple bottles of wine and spirits, beer, hampers, biscuits, and chocolates, which we raffled off to staff, raising £200 for Rochdale Children’s Moorland Home.
Based at Nab Farm, Wardle, the home provides five-day breaks for deserving children referred by children’s social care, schools, and community groups in the Rochdale and Rossendale areas during school holidays and is used by local schools for day or overnight visits during term time between March and September.
John Lees, Managing Director, explains: “We arrange a number of charity events throughout the year as our way of putting something back into the community. This is the second time we’ve done a raffle using all the generous gifts we receive from suppliers at Christmas.
“We chose the Rochdale Children’s Moorland Home as Christmas is typically about children and we felt that the Moorland Home charity would be a good cause to support as it’s a respite facility for disadvantaged children.
“It provides them with a week away to enjoy their childhood, have homecooked meals, a comfortable bed for the week, and access to a range of fun activities and support.”
Entwining two long and rich histories
Our support for The Rochdale Children’s Moorland Home charity meshes two long and rich histories.
The home dates back to the 1890s when it was launched amid the industrial revolution, to benefit children from poor homes, with an ethos of ‘fresh air, fresh food and good fun’ – which still holds today.
The only charity of its kind in the north of England, its website states: “We do not encourage the use of electronic games, excessive TV or mobile phones when at the Home. Instead, we opt for more traditional play and team building activities.”
Extensive outdoor play areas feature a football pitch, climbing frame, swings, trampolines, play fort, and two wooded wildlife areas – one of which is used by many schools as a Forest School facility. There is also a large wooden barn for inclement weather play.
You can read a full account of the history here.
LTE, meanwhile, was established in 1947 and we have always been based in Greenfield. Originally known as Laboratory Thermal Equipment, we specialised in the design and manufacture of ovens, incubators and other temperature controlled products.
We started to manufacture autoclaves (steam sterilisers) for the life science sector in 1973, later acquiring a Northampton-based steriliser manufacturer called Autoclave Control and Engineering (ACE), whose operation included a large service business and the design and manufacture of larger capacity steam sterilisers, serving the laboratory, medical, and pharmaceutical markets.
LTE became part of the AIM listed SDI Group Plc (SDI) in 2022, during our 75th anniversary year, becoming part of an established group with an outstanding record of growth following acquisitions and development of other businesses in similar sectors, including the life-science and medical markets.
