Staff from the independent insurance brokers Alan Boswell Insurance Management (ABIM) spent Suffolk Day selling treats from an ice cream van, raising £500 for local charity Suffolk Mind in the process.

The team from ABIM made their way around Bury St Edmunds, visiting offices and inviting clients and guests to join them for a sweet treat.

The successful day finished off in Bury town centre with further Suffolk Day festivities.

ABIM chose to support Suffolk Mind, affiliated to Mind National, in recognition of the amazing work that it undertakes improving the lives of people with mental health issues and raising awareness of mental wellbeing across the county.

Managing director Adrian Rayner said: “Having been in Suffolk for the past 10 years we wanted to do something a little different to help commemorate our fantastic county. Suffolk is known as the ‘Foodie County’ so what’s better than an ice cream on a nice sunny day? We had a great response from everyone we met on our route and would like to say a big thank you to everyone who donated. We’re thrilled that we were able to raise a significant sum of money for an incredible charity and hope to further support Suffolk Mind in the future.”

Suffolk Mind fundraising manager Carole Thain added: “We are extremely grateful to the team at Alan Boswell for supporting us through their fundraising initiative on Suffolk Day. Their innovative approach to fundraising helped greatly to raise awareness as well as donations in the west of the county, our thanks to everyone who took part and contributed in support of our charity work.”

ABIM is part of Alan Boswell Group, a top UK independent insurance broker and financial planner. The group, whose head office is in Norwich, has more than 350 staff across 10 offices in the East of England, including Bury St Edmunds which opened in November 2007.