Hospice Isle of Man’s latest fundraiser is now being supported by Manx Telecom.

The company is to pay £2,500 a month as a large sculpture sponsor for the ’Wild in Art’ trail.

The event will see a trail of more than 30 life-size dolphins take centre stage on a public art trail live around the island for 12 weeks from May to September 2022.

They will be joined by 40 baby dolphins.

Each of these sculptures will be sponsored by businesses.

The project has more than 30 schools from across the island helping to design one of the baby dolphins which form part of the trail.

Gary Lamb, Manx Telecom chief executive, said: ’Initiatives like this art trail work on so many levels - as a way to encourage creativity and express artistic talent, a way to engage the community and get people visiting different places around the island and, critically, as a way to raise money for Hospice and the vital services it provides to individuals and families during difficult times.

’We know it is a charity that our people and our customers regard dearly. We also recognise the value of bringing people to work together on projects such as this that provide a splash of fun and colour, particularly after the past 18 months or so, and we are looking forward to seeing all the designs in situ later this year.’

Chief executive of Hospice Isle of Man, Anne Mills said: ’Having Manx Telecom come on board with what’s going to be the highlight of the event calendar year on the island for 2022, is fantastic news. Hospice are extremely grateful to Manx Telecom who have in the past shown tremendous support for us and continue to do so.

’We have been overwhelmed by the response from the business community so far across the island.

’With many of our fundraising events cancelled or postponed over the last 18 months, it has given us added motivation to make the Big Splash an event for everyone to remember, and ensure we can continue to be here for our patients and their families.’