Bullock's coaches collected us all from the Cheadle Hulme office at 9.30am (everyone was on time for work) and took us straight to Chatsworth House near Baslow Derbyshire. On the way we marvelled at the autumnal golds and coppers. We were also shown the way to John'sDonkey Sanctuary called "Freshfields" where tired and weary Donkeys provide much needed love and attention to visitors and disabled visitors alike. We all wished, at the top of our voices, best wishes to "Beethoven", one of the donkeys who was being sent to Lourdes for some treatment that day.

Also in time honoured tradition we were treated to a 5 part quiz on the coach, the prize for which was chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate. He wins it every year does young Richard Davis. He left the rest of us standing as always. Still he did share his chocolate Heroes with some of us - well I think he did, but I didn't get any. Thanks go to Debra for organising the taxing questions. Most of us managed to get more than half of them wrong, and we are meant to be a highly intelligent legal team!

At Chatsworth House we met Paul and Jonathan who, although the combined age of at least 70, managed to cycle at nearly 40 m.p.h. for at least some of the way, up the hill from Buxton instead of getting the coach. We fatter ones managed to marvel at their turkey legs. They had even brought a change of clothing so that they would blend in nicely with the room stewards.

We all went round the marvellous gardens where some of us pinched the miniature strawberries without getting caught. The gravity fed 150 year old fountain performed in spectacular style by shooting 90 feet in the air. The house displayed the regal splendour one can expect from over 400 years of aristocratic spending including the famous painted violin.

Thoroughly unused to so much fresh air we all trouped off to the Duke of York pub for a thoroughly traditional English lunch. Some of us ate so much we could hardly move - mentioning no names but didn't we Christine?

Replete (John said that meant "Full") we all trouped off in the coach to Bakewell, where the more greedy of us (Paul) managed yet more food in the form of a Pudding from the famous Bakewell Pudding Shop. Now waddling from the sheer weight of food we staggered back to the coach which struggled up the hills to home in Cheadle Hulme. The sickeningly athletic ones, already mentioned above, cycled off their pud by riding home for at least part of the way.

So all in all a good "Investor in People" day was had by all. Roll on March. I wonder where we will be going next year. Finally apologies to anyone who tried to contact us on Monday in desperation. We hope you were not too inconvenienced.