Our Market Harborough office is celebrating its 10th Anniversary this year, after first opening its doors on 27th May 2014.
The office opened with just 3 staff in 2014 and has grown to over 20 staff members this year, with more new starters set to join over the coming months. To celebrate and to mark the occasion, the staff have been taking part in 10 separate events, running throughout the year and ranging from sports events, to quiz nights, to craft-making.
To kick off the series of events, the Market Harborough team travelled to Haygates Farm in Great Bowden to volunteer at ‘Wellness in the Wild’, a wildlife retreat for veterans and the general public. The team spent the day helping to plant 900 hawthorn tree whips, a worthwhile way to kick off the celebration event schedule!
For event number two, the Market Harborough Office hosted “The Great TEP Bake Off”. The event was supported by TEP’s other offices across the UK, who held additional bake sales and bake offs in support of our chosen CSR charities. We clearly have quite a few unsung culinary heroes TEP and choosing a Star Baker from each office was no piece of cake! Congratulations to Star Bakers Maggie Fennell, Darren Bennett, Elin Roberts and Eddie Chandler, who won the coveted ‘Star Baker’ trophies at each of our offices.
For event number three, our Market Harborough team organised a sponsored walk at in support of our chosen CSR charities. The adventure kicked off with a challenging climb up Beacon Hill, Leicestershire’s second-highest point. From there, the team navigated beautiful countryside trails to Bradgate Park, a historic site recently awarded National Nature Reserve status, recognising it as one of the most important natural sites in the country.
Covering 439 hectares, Bradgate Park is home to some of England’s oldest fossils and rocks, and boasts a rich variety of species including fallow and red deer, kingfishers, the rare ‘Charnwood spider,’ and 800-year-old ancient oaks. The park was also the childhood home of Lady Jane Grey, the “Nine Days’ Queen” who briefly claimed the throne of England and Ireland from 10th-19th July 1553. This status will help protect the park’s natural assets and ensure sustainable management for the future. Once at Bradgate Park, the team rewarded themselves with ice creams and a closer look at Old John Tower, an 18th-century Georgian folly and one of Leicestershire’s most iconic landmarks.
Collectively, the team walked 100km, with an extra 30km contributed by their four-legged companions. Well done team!
Event number 4 was another sporting event: a 10k carnival race through the streets and surrounding areas of Market Harborough town. Fortunately, the weather held up, making it a fabulous day for both runners and supporters, who came along to cheer everyone on. Hats off to everyone who took part and congrats to David Miller, who was the first TEP’er across the finish line!
Our Market Harborough team had a fantastic time at their Family Sports Day and Picnic, which was event 5 out of our total 10 across the year.
Thankfully, we didn’t need our rainy-day contingency plan, and had a great time playing fun games and activities for the majority if the afternoon, before relaxing with an amazing picnic spread. We couldn’t let the day end without a Euro24-inspired game of football, with Technical Director Francis Hesketh showcasing his goalkeeping skills and cementing his status as TEP’s leading goalie by pulling off a save that Jordan Pickford would be proud of!
For the sixth in our series of ten events, the team volunteered at the Market Harborough Junior Parkrun in Welland Park. The day was a great success, with over 100 runners joining in, including one of our own mini-TEP’ers!
Stay tuned for updates on our remaining 4 events!
