More than £500,000 was raised for OnSide Youth Zones at a ball organised by Kier Highways.

The event at the Park Royal Hotel in Stretton, near Warrington, was attended by 260 guests including Baroness Newlove of Warrington, the guest of honour.

OnSide is an organisation which is helping to change the lives of young people by providing them with opportunities. Warrington Youth Club became part of the OnSide network in 2016 and work is starting soon on their new £6.5m centre in the town centre.

Dave Wright, founder of Collaborative Learning Circle, a learning and development forum initiated within Kier Highways which organised the evening was thrilled by the success of the ball.

He said: ‘To have raised over half a million pounds feels like a dream. I cannot thank our guests and friends from the industry enough for their outstanding and exceptional generosity. This will make such a huge difference to the lives of many young people and will help save lives.’