Swinton Estate’s annual Carols by Candlelight will be taken online this Advent, premiering on the 1st December in aid of the Archbishop of York Youth Trust.

Kick start your Advent with the online Carols by Candlelight featuring a talk from the Archbishop of York, The Most Revd and Rt Hon Stephen Cottrell, sung carols by The Yorkshire Voices and a reading from pupils at St John’s Academy in Brighouse. Stories of young people serving their local communities throughout lockdown will also be featured throughout the online event.

For the last three years, Swinton Estate have supported the Archbishop of York Youth Trust by hosting an annual Carols by Candlelight evening, featuring sung carols by the two choirs, the Yorkshire Decibelles and the Yorkshire Voices. The events have raised over £20,000 for the Youth Trust. This year, Swinton Estate are continuing to support the Youth Trust with the virtual carols, with much of the filming for the service taking place at Swinton Park, the luxury castle hotel.

Carols by Candlelight will premiere at 7.30pm on the Archbishop of York Youth Trust’s Facebook and YouTube accounts, and will be accessible to watch after this premiere through both Facebook and YouTube.

For more information about the service, and how it was filmed in line with government guidance, visit abyyt.com/cbc.

The Archbishop of York Youth Trust is passionate about developing opportunities for young people to grow in leadership, faith and character, in partnership with schools, churches and communities. Through the Young Leaders Award, the Youth Trust has empowered over 100,000 young people from over 850 schools to learn and practice key leadership skills and character virtues and to transform their communities through social action.

Felicity Cunliffe-Lister, proprietor of Swinton Park, said:

“I am delighted to be able to help support the ABYYT this year, in such difficult times. It is a charity that inspires many young people to really make a difference. Christmas won’t be quite the same at Swinton without the Carols by Candlelight, but I am really looking forward to the virtual version!”

Dan Finn, Chief Executive of the Archbishop of York Youth Trust, said:

“Despite the challenges of 2020, we have been amazed by the fantastic stories of hope that have come from so many of the children and young people that we work with. As you join us online for this year’s Carols by Candlelight, we hope that you’ll be inspired by these amazing stories from young people across the country, whilst also enjoying some festivities together. We are deeply grateful for Swinton Estate’s continued support.” 

About the Swinton Estate

The Swinton Estate is one of the largest privately-owned Estates in England, situated near Masham in North Yorkshire and stretching over 20,000 acres from the River Ure in Wensleydale upon to the moors. It has been owned by the Cunliffe-Lister family since the 1880sand comprises Swinton Park, the 32-room castle hotel, Swinton Cookery School, the adjacent Country Club & Spa and Swinton Bivouac, the estate’s tree lodge and glamping retreat. It is also home to the Bird of Prey Centre and Northern Fishing School.