Women in Business Networking

We are on the way back from attending the Women in Business Network event organised by the Chamber of Commerce which was held at the beautiful Lakeside Hotel overlooking Windermere. The event took place in the new conference facility which was an addition to the hotel in May 2011 and which in our opinion is a superb venue for any kind of function including weddings.

After enjoying our Cumberland sausage muffins and freshly squeezed orange juice we met some really interesting people and developed a new range of business contacts through speed networking.

We wrapped things up with a tour of the hotel and were impressed with the quality of a recent refurbishment after flooding several years ago.

Kirstie Somerville and Carrie Taylor

Lazonby Auction – ‘Alston Moor’ Mule Gimmer Lambs

On Wednesday 28 September, Kevin Collier and myself attended Lazonby Auction for one of the largest sales of the year- the annual Alston Moor Show and Sale of 22,355 Mule gimmer lambs.

Everywhere you looked there were sheep... lots and lots of sheep!

The sale was very well supported by locals and travellers and the average price per mule came to £96.08 which is a 55p increase from last year. This may not seem a lot but when you look at the bigger picture, every penny counts and it all adds up.

The show held a competition for the best pen of NEMSA mule gimmers the night before the main show. 17 pens of NEMSA lambs were kindly sponsored by several local businesses - 1st prize and winning the William Armstrong Memorial Cup was T Bowman of Brampton Fell.

Emma Thomlinson

The West Cumbria Curry club

Last night Julie Osborn, Fiona Thompson and myself attended the 3rd West Cumbria Curry Club. This is a networking event held for professionals based in West Cumbria; whether that be Solicitors, Accountants, Bankers or Estate Agents, it is a relaxing way to meet like-minded people whilst enjoying a good curry.

Last night over 40 people met at the Ali Taj Tandoori Restaurant in Whitehaven to catch up with new contacts and develop business relationships in an informal social environment.

The curry and conversation was fantastic and the event was definitely well worth attending.

Michael Peile

Borderway Suckled calf show – Saturday 24 September 2011

Saturday morning saw Michael have an early start at the Borderway Suckled calf show at Carlisle auction, opening our booth at 7.30am. Sandra and I followed shortly after, although not quite as early as that!

David Allen was joint sponsors of the show with Allflex, Capontree vets and Pfizer Animal Health. The event gave us the ideal opportunity to catch up with clients and other farming related businesses during the show.

Saturday also saw the second sale for the local Solway & Tyne Texel breeders club, of which I am secretary. In this capacity I had a busy day dealing with any issues that the sheep breeders had whilst also trying to catch glimpses of the show and sale of the cattle.

The store cattle had a good trade throughout the day, with a lot of vendors averaging over £1000 per head. There were some fantastic cattle shown and it was obvious to see that a lot of work had gone into their preparation - whether there was just 1 or 200, the cattle were shown in tip top condition. The top price of the day went to Robert and Michael Scott of Thirlwall Castle, with their Red Limousin steer selling at £3,500.00.

Emma Pigg

Networking at Haydock races

On Friday 23 September, Sandra and I were invited to Haydock Racecourse as guests of Begbies Traynor.

An early start saw us board the train at Carlisle, travelling to Preston to meet Lila, Jessica and the team from Begbies Traynor along with other guests. Our first port of call was a bar called Forum, where we welcomed a glass of fizz and several delicious canapés. Following our pit stop we then got a minibus to Haydock Racecourse - a journey taking about 45 minutes.

Once at the racecourse we were excited to find that our table was situated in a corporate box where we were treated to a full afternoon tea which included plenty of sandwiches, cakes and refreshments.

Haydock is a lovely racecourse and from our balcony we were able to see all of the racing and even managed to win a few bets whilst enjoying some sunshine.

Thank you to Begbies Traynor for inviting Sandra and I, we both had a fantastic day.

Alison Welton

Cumbria Chamber

On Thursday 22 September, Kirstie, Jill and Myself attended the Cumbria Chamber ‘lets do lunch’ networking event at Carlisle racecourse. Over lunch we had the opportunity to give a brief presentation about our firm to all attendees – Kirstie delivered this on behalf of David Allen and in my opinion did a fantastic job.

Following the presentations we were actively encouraged to partake in an informal networking session, where we got the chance to chat to other businesses that were at the event. I spoke with several very interesting businesses that included a Private Investigator and a company involved in renewable energy.

All in all it was a good event and a great opportunity to network with like-minded people.

Mark James

Taking one small step with Barclays Bank

Yesterday, Julie Osborn, Michael Peile and myself had the pleasure of being invited on the Barclays wagon to learn some trusty inspirational tips from Robert Craven. You would never have thought we were in a wagon as it was very stable and had all of the latest IT gadgets as well as a cash machine!

Robert Craven gave us some useful feedback as to why clients come to us and also why they may leave… we have welcomed his advice with open arms. I was also very fortunate to win 2 of Robert’s books in a luck dip so am looking forward to reading them.

Barclays Regional Director, Martin Bonner and Area Business Manager, Neil Clayton gave an overview on their thoughts for our region whilst Elaine Gray and Philip Royle, our local business managers were available for us to bounce ideas off and catch up with.

Barclays continued their event by showing 30 ten year olds how to appreciate and learn the value of money.

I would like to thank Barclays for their hospitality and commend them for ‘being out there’ to help the Community.

Kirstie Somerville

An Evening with John Stevenson

Last night I attended a Law Society event with a couple of my colleagues.

The evening was a talk by John Stevenson MP. John gave a very interesting insight of the run up to the election where he won his seat in Parliament. He then went on to describe what it is like to be an MP working in Parliament and what he hopes to achieve for Carlisle.

Before John’s inspirational talk, we had an opportunity to meet other members and guests and also visit the new Roman Frontier Gallery at Tullie House which is currently home to the Nijmegen Roman Cavalry helmet. The Helmet, on loan from Museum Het Valkof in Nijmegen, The Netherlands, dates from the second half of the first century.

It was an excellent evening organised by Carlisle & District Law Society.

David Allen

Nestle Cappuccino Ball

David Allen had the pleasure of taking a table at the Nestle Cappuccino Ball on Saturday 17 September at Garden of Eden, Eden Golf Club. The event was organised by Nestle and CA Events with all proceeds in aid of the Alzheimer’s Society.

It was a lovely evening, starting off with a champagne reception, followed by a four course meal, a charity auction and an evening of spectacular entertainment. Explosive Productions provided professional cabaret acts which included music from Copacabana and Queen. A live group followed the cabaret and as everyone danced the night away, a fantastic night was had by all.

Alison Welton

The Great North Run

On Sunday 18 September, myself and my mum set off to Newcastle to take part in the Great North Run. This is the third time we have done the race and yet again the atmosphere was fantastic.

Today we are slowly recovering from our aches and pains but we would thoroughly recommend anyone to give this a try next year; it’s a great event to be involved in and the sense of achievement is well worth the pain!

Many people use this event to achieve a personal goal for themselves and to raise funds for their favourite charity at the same time. We have been hard at work raising money for Help the Hospices and have managed to raise almost £400... we would like to thank everyone who sponsored us.

Louise and Carol Thomson

Team David Allen - Cycling for a good cause

Several months ago a group of us decided that we were ready for a new fitness challenge - when we heard about the Jennings River Ride we thought this was just up our street.

Entrance fees are in support of The Cumbria Community Foundation, a local charity that exists to tackle poverty and improve the quality of life for the people of Cumbria. In addition to this we also decided to raise money for The Great North Air Ambulance - a service that is invaluable in the Lake District and surrounding area.

Following the unsettled weather earlier in the week we were relieved to find perfect cycling weather and after many months of training we set off from Keswick... little did we know what we had let ourselves in for!

Our incredibly fit trio (Leanne, Sam and Ben) set off on their epic 145km ride, aptly named 'The Big day Out'. From Keswick to Workington and back, then up and over Newlands and Honister Pass; a ride definitely not for the feint hearted! Feeling more like mountain goats than accountants, they did brilliantly - Sam completed the ride in only 5 hours and 5 minutes.

Seven of us, set off on the 57km ride whist three more colleagues took part in the 1

5km family ride. In between the drama of a punctured tyre and a couple of tumbles we all battled the hills and made it to the end.

We would like to thank The Cumbria Community Foundation and volunteers - they did an excellent job.

Today, we all have a few aches and pains, but we are really proud of ourselves and are looking forward to taking up t

he challenge again next year.

So far we have raised £315.00 for The Great North Air Ambulance. If you would like to donate you can still do so by visiting our JustGiving page www.justgiving.com/Team-davidallen

Julie Walsh

The Grand Opening Of System Training Skills Academy

I was honoured to be invited to the grand opening of System Training Skills Academy. The academy was officially opened by HRH The Princess Royal, and the good Cumbrian weather didn’t let us down, we had a dry, sunny day.

The academy has excellent facilities, which can only help the Cumbrian economy.

An excellent ceremony, well organised and all credit to the Chief Executive Robin Brown, Chairman Paul Byrne, the Directors and staff of System Training.

David Allen

Exam Success

Congratulations to Sam Verry who has now passed all of his exams towards becoming a fully qualified Chartered Accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

Sam has been on a training contract with us whilst doing his exams and now that he has passed these and obtained sufficient work experience he can apply to become a member of the Institute.

We are extremely proud of Sam and it’s fantastic that he has passed his exams; Sam has put in a lot of hard work studying and it has paid off.

Within the firm we focus on our people and providing training in a wide range of areas; it’s great to see the results of this as our colleagues pass their exams and develop their careers.

Well done to Sam. We are looking forward to him working with us and developing a long and successful career going forward.

Alison Welton

Westmorland Show

Thursday 8 September 2011 saw the 212th Annual Westmorland Show take place at Crooklands, near Kendal; formed in 1799, it is one of the oldest in the country.

This 'local' agricultural show has certainly grown over the last couple of centuries, with attendance figures now exceeding 30,000.

The damp weather was compounded by the previous week’s torrential rain, but as they say... 'The show must go on' and on it did. Emma Pigg and myself went prepared with wellies and waterproofs (much needed) and a token 4x4 vehicle (a must have for successfully getting off the show field car park!).

The livestock classes had a great number of entries for the pedigree and commercial sections and it was a pleasure watching the judging take place. The trade stands were in abundance with a large number of 'renewable' energy companies being represented; highlighting the changes that are available now to energy and diversification options.

We met with a number of our clients and contacts and really enjoyed the show - even if it was a little 'clarty'!

By Sandra Gowling

A day at the Races

On Wednesday 7 September, I and several of my colleagues were treated to a day at the races.

Carlisle Racecourse is the perfect location for any hospitality event – to entertain business clients, celebrate a special occasion or just enjoy a day out with friends... like we did. Our table was situated in the Stobart Hospitality box with stunning panoramic views over the racecourse and fabulous food and drink. We were treated to a four course meal followed by afternoon tea and scones.

With an excellent race programme we had the opportunity to ‘win big’ or ‘lose big’ with some having more luck than others and although the rain persisted, no races were cancelled and as we soaked up the atmosphere we were kept dry in the comfort of our exclusive surroundings.

We had a fantastic day at the races and would like to thank David and the partners for their generosity.

By Louise Thomson

Richard Rose Morton Academy Official Opening

On Wednesday evening, a few of us were lucky enough to attend the opening of Richard Rose Morton Academy at Carlisle. It was a fantastic evening, being entertained by the school choir and then been taken round to look at the school. The facilities the academy offers students are exceptional, with up to date technology and big open spaces. The teachers who were present were obviously and quite rightly proud of their new working environment.

We then had a presentation by Career Academies UK, encouraging businesses to volunteer their time to work with students to support and guide them by sharing their knowledge and experience. This can be done by either giving up some time to mentor students over a period of time, or by hosting visits to the workplace. The aim is to keep our future talent in Cumbria!!

An excellent evening was had and I wish my school was well equipped and had such enthusiastic teachers when I was younger!

By Jackie Matthews

Astro Soccer Sixes Carlisle Division 2

On Monday night our David Allen team turned out for the opening game of the season against Del Monte. Our team consisted of me playing in goals, a solid defensive pairing of Craig Pollock and Danny Roper, a flamboyant midfield Sam Verry, Jaimi Wilson and star-striker Ricky Taylor.

The game started well and it was a fairly even first few minutes until a suspect refereeing decision (my Dad being the referee) gifted Del Monte a corner kick which led to their first goal. Now we were chasing the game to try to get back on level terms but unfortunately this led to some counter attacks and we were soon 4-0 down.

After going 4-0 down, early into the second half a fabulous display of football began… from Roper's beautifully picked out pass to Taylor down the wing, Taylor then knocked it to Wilson while cleverly maneuvering behind the defence, Wilson threaded the ball to Taylor who produced a clinical finish to make it 4-1.

In the end we lost 7-1 but the score line flattered the opposition and left us with a lot of hope for the season ahead.

By Robert Nordon

Hog Roast

On Saturday 31 August we held our very first annual hog roast and family fun day for our staff and their families to thank them for their hard work throughout the year.

We could not have asked for a better day, with the sun shining, delicious food and a variety of activities for everyone to enjoy.

As the hog gently roasted the guests began to arrive, bringing with them a host of delicious homemade salad’s and desserts.

David and Alison’s children had been hard at work the day before planning a scavenger hunt and a ‘guess how many bottle tops in the tub’ – Linda won the scavenger hunt and Sophie from our Workington office won the bottle top competition, winning some lovely chocolates for their efforts!

Amongst the many games in the garden there was a bouncy castle, an enormous inflatable slide and a rodeo sheep; a few needed a helping hand to mount the sheep, but Michael Peile was the winner staying on for a grand total of 78 seconds.

Everyone had a fantastic day and we are all looking forward to next year’s fun day.

By Julie Walsh