As part of its sponsorship, Bancon will sponsor a six-foot hare sculpture which will be painted by artist Lucy Jean Thomson and located in Banchory at a venue which will be confirmed in due course.

In addition to this, Bancon has also announced a partnership with Hill of Banchory Primary School. As part of its Big Hop Trail sponsorship, the school has been given a moon gazer leveret by the company for the children to decorate. 

In a further strengthening of ties with the school, the decoration for this will be chosen from the winner of a competition.  This will involve more than 50 P5 pupils and the winner will be chosen by Bancon Group employees. Once designed, the school’s leveret will also go on display.

The Clan Cancer Support Big Hop Trail will run from 2 July to 3 September and is a public art event which will take the public on a cultural tour of the north-east and the islands, with hare sculptures designed and created by some of the country’s most talented artists.

The trail coincides with Clan’s 40th anniversary, with the 40 hares being the focal point to celebrate the charity’s commitment to supporting people affected by cancer.                    

John Irvine, Bancon Group CEO, said: “We are very proud to announce our sponsorship of the Clan Cancer Support Big Hop Trail and our new community partnership with Hill of Banchory School.  It is fantastic to be working on a project which not only brings different aspects of the Banchory community together but also raises crucial funds for charity.”

Deborah Burr, head teacher at Hill of Banchory School, added: “Pupils in our P5 class are very excited to be working on this project with Bancon Group and are very much looking forward to the competition and delivering a fabulous piece of artwork, which we hope everyone will come to see and really love.”