Boxing night for Wigan's armed forces hub collects almost £20k

Wigan Council’s armed forces team, led by John Harker, arranged the event at The Edge Conference Centre and hosted top fighters from the army team alongside the English and

Scottish national teams as they took to the ring in a bid to raise awareness about Wigan Borough Armed Forces HQ and its services.

The event raised a total of £17,000, which will be put into a pot called The Veteran’s Welfare Fund, to fund invaluable front-line support for the borough’s serving personnel, ex-forces and their families at times of need.

The black-tie affair was a ticket-only event and included a drinks reception, three course dinner and entrance to 12 bouts of boxing.

The evening had a clear military theme, with army drummers and pipers to help raise awareness and funds for the hub. Attendees also took part in a charity auction and raffle.

Coun Clive Morgan, lead member for armed forces in Wigan Borough, said: “The borough’s armed forces hub provides invaluable services for serving personnel, ex-forces and their families.

“We are committed to looking at how we can work even closer with our partners to provide wraparound support to this very specific group of residents, who may have more complex needs than the average civilian.

“The funds raised as part of this event will aid us to do this and will go a long way in helping us to develop the offer at the armed forces hub.

“The evening brought together the community and was a fantastic way to show our appreciation to our armed forces community while also raising money for a worthy local cause.”

The ground-breaking hub was officially opened by Simon Weston CBE in 2018 and is located in Molyneux House (the former Withnall House building) in Wigan.

In addition to the council’s armed forces team, a range of charities and organisations that provide vital support to the armed forces community are based at the hub.

Molyneux House also doubles up as a meeting point for the Wigan Sea Cadets, who operates the facility with partners.

For more information about the boxing event, please email [email protected]