Flock of Shaun sculptures raises record £385,000 for hospice at auction

A flock of Shaun the Sheep sculptures raised more than £385,000 at auction last night in aid of the Martlets Hospice in Brighton.

Generous art lovers placed bids of up to £25,000 in order to take one of the 120 creations home.

That was the price paid for "Bloom" painted by artist Faye Bridgewater.

£40,000 was also raised from eight bids of £5,000 each to commission eight personalised "Little Shauns".

The £385,000 raised on top of £44,000 raised from tickets sales over the farewell weekend from 6,750 visitors. 

The funds raised will help the Sussex hospice charity continue its work caring for local people facing the toughest times.

Tanya Hunt, from The Martlets, said: "We’ve been blown away by the success of the Shaun the Sheep auction.

"We knew there was a lot of affection for the sculptures but to raise more than £385,000 is incredible.

"Every penny raised will support us to keep caring and helping people do what they love with the time they have."

The Shaun by the Sea trail has been the Martlets’ most popular to date.

The trail app was downloaded more than 11,000 times, with thousands of people ticking off the sculptures they spotted and winning rewards from different locations.

A few of the statues were sadly damaged whilst out on the streets but were repaired in time for auction.

Retail manager Fran Wilson said, "The skills, the talent that they have never surprises me. The feedback from the public has been incredible.

"The response has been incredible and the number of tickets that have been sold for the farewell event just speaks for itself.

"It allows us to continue to provide the care that people need in the way that we need it. We've got a brand new hospice, and this is the opportunity for for people to contribute, to keep that running."

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