Holmes Chapel Partnership hands over the Sleigh reins to The Shed Crew

For over 40 years Santa's Sleigh has been a well-loved tradition of Christmas in Holmes Chapel and the surrounding villages. On December evenings, local voluntary groups bring Santa and his sleigh around the neighbourhood so that excited children can meet Santa at their doorstep.

The Sleigh was first introduced to the area by the Holmes Chapel Round Table, who then passed responsibility to Holmes Chapel Rotary Club. The Holmes Chapel Partnership have been the custodians of Santa's Sleigh since 2018, taking over when the Holmes Chapel Rotary Club closed.

In 2026 the Sleigh will be passed to its new owners, Holmes Chapel Shed Crew, who are a fully inclusive organisation based around the principles of Create, Make, Craft and Mend, welcoming people of all skills and abilities. Will Burnham and the Shed Crew have already played a major part in the Sleigh’s history as they helped rebuild the sleigh in 2022, and have continued to offer support to keep it running smoothly.

The sleigh visits as many roads and estates as it can across Holmes Chapel, Cranage, Brereton and Goostrey throughout December - regardless of the weather. As well as appearing at the Holmes Chapel Christmas Market, the sleigh was out going door-to-door for an epic 16 nights, along with four Primary School visits.

Volunteer Santa’s elves collect donations en route which are passed on to local groups, charities and good causes.

Santa was joined by a different local group for each outing, with some donating their share of the money raised to local charities.

The money raised by the sleigh runs supports many local causes, as well as keeping the sleigh up and running, so thank you to everyone in Holmes Chapel and the surrounding area who made a donation this year.

Groups involved this year were: Brereton Scouts, Bridge the Gap, Goostrey Guides, HC Velo, Hermitage Primary School PTFA, Holmes Chapel Guides, Holmes Chapel Community Pre-school, Holmes Chapel Primary School PTFA, Holmes Chapel U14 Rugby Club, Holmes Chapel Scouts, Middlewich Foodbank, and Viking Explorer Scouts.

Peter Whiers, Holmes Chapel Partnership Chair, said:

“The Partnership are really proud to have spent so many years as custodians of the Sleigh - Seeing smiling faces and getting thank yous from children, parents and older people on our route makes the hard work of running it all worthwhile.

We know the Sleigh will be in good hands with The Shed Crew who we will continue to support as they take on this important task for our local area.”

Over the past 35 years, collections made using the Santa Sleigh have been estimated to exceed well over £100,000, all of which has been shared throughout the community, and has supported many local organisations and charities.

The local groups who supported the 2025 Sleigh runs receive their cheques. Photograph by Gail Griggs

Ends

For further information please contact:

Karoline Morgan

Holmes Chapel Partnership

Media & Communications

07760 133 004