CHRISTMAS has come early for Claire House Children’s Hospice thanks
to teenagers who together with a Warrington business helped raised an incredible £15,000 for the charity. 
The money was raised from the Miss Teen Great Britain event organised by Warrington businesswoman, Holly Ikin, and it saw teenagers from across the UK to compete in the grand final in Blackpool.
Holly, herself a former Miss England finalist, said: “I launched the Miss Junior Teen Great Britain and Miss Teen Great Britain competitions in 2011 to celebrate the nation’s teenagers and their achievements. It is not a typical ‘beauty pageant’ in that it focuses on the girls and their personality.
“One section of the competition is charity fundraising, I selected Claire House Children’s Hospice after supporting and visiting them whilst I was Miss Cheshire, as I had seen first-hand the amazing work that they had done.”
The finalists of Junior and Miss Teen Great Britain, including Ella Ravenscroft – Miss Junior Teen Great Britain from Irlam, Caitlin Holmes – Miss Junior Teen Warrington and Olivia Davidson-Slack – Miss Junior Teen Cheshire East, all raised funds for the hospice and used their imaginations to think of innovative ways to raise as much as possible – from car boot sales to wearing the same dress every day for a month!
Since supporting Claire House last year, the competition has raised over £22,500 for the hospice.
Holly added: “I often think the press give teenagers a bit of stick but being part of this competition really has shown that there is so much more than the negative stereotypes of the youth of today. The girls were an amazing group and to raise such a phenomenal amount really proved this!”
One finalist who proved herself to be a star-fundraiser was Olivia Davidson-Slack, who raised over £3000 this year.
This was particularly significant, as Olivia was due to compete in the grand final last year but due to being involved in a serious road accident the week before, was unable to do so. However, she had been fundraising for the charity before the accident and had already raised over £2000.
In total, she has raised over £5000 for Claire House since being involved with Miss Teen Great Britain.
meanwhile Holly has certainly been keeping herself busy in recent months. As well as organising Miss Teen Great Britain, she runs The Dress Studio in Culcheth. The boutique stocks dresses for all occasions and are prom specialists!
Holly added: “We have been overwhelmed by the success of the store and so, we are proud to announce that have expanded the premises and so, we are now double the size and have nine changing rooms. We have had a great response from the local communities with everyone commenting on how much easier it is to find a dress when coming to just one store and knowing that there will be hundreds to choose from!”
The Dress Studio has over six hundred dresses in stock and are stockists of collections including Sherri Hill, Jovani and Forever Unique.
With Christmas coming up, it is also the a must-visit to help you find the perfect dress for the party season!
Picture shows Holly with Ella Ravenscroft – Miss Junior Teen Great Britain from Irlam, Caitlin Holmes – Miss Junior Teen Warrington
and Olivia Davidson-Slack – Miss Junior Teen Cheshire East
