University students have raised thousands for charity.

The 65 second year students, from the University of Chester’s campuses in Chester, Warrington and Shrewsbury, brought in almost £7,500 thanks to their efforts.

The students, studying events management, were placed in small groups to create, develop, plan and deliver a fundraising event on behalf of a range of local and national charities.

One group teamed up with Storyhouse in Chester to devise a creative learning craft and storytelling event for children while students in Shrewsbury collaborated with internationally renowned performance group Reckless Sleepers to stage a three-night production.

Another group raised almost £1,000 by holding a cocktail masterclass and a series of smaller fundraisers including a bake sale and a three-hour spin class. The funds raised went to the Hospice of the Good Shepherd in Backford.

The group, named LMPE Events, included team leader Laura D’Alessandro, 19, from Basel in Switzerland, who said: “The cocktail masterclass was well-attended and people really enjoyed it, it was relatively inexpensive for what was included.

“The venue, The Alchemist in Chester, was also unbelievably helpful and friendly to us and our guests.”

She added: “We are so proud to have raised so much for local charity the Hospice of the Good Shepherd. As the team leader I have felt nothing but pride in all aspects of the planning and delivery of our events.

“It’s always an amazing reward to see our guests enjoying the events we host.”

Janet Uttley at the hospice commented: “The team worked really hard and we were so impressed with their attention to detail. They came in to meet us and made sure they understood how the hospice supports the local area before their planning got under way.

“We are so grateful to everyone that got involved in the cocktail mixing, baking and spinning, a huge thank you from all of us here at Hospice of the Good Shepherd. LMPE Events did us proud.”

Tim Brown, senior lecturer in events management at the university, added: “We are delighted with the quality of all the events this year and the huge benefits paid to such a wide ranging number of charities.

“LMPE were certainly a good example of good fundraising for a small bespoke event proving that events don’t need to be big to have a positive impact.”