- British Horseracing stages Race Experience Day for students at Cheltenham Racecourse for the first time
- Cheltenham Racecourse brings communities together with an exclusive behind-the-scenes day at the races for local student
A group of eight students from the St George’s Centre, Cheltenham and Tewkesbury, will attend Cheltenham racecourse on Friday 12th November 2010, as the result of a partnership implemented between youth charity The Prince’s Trust and the British Horseracing Authority (BHA). The aim of the day is to introduce the students to the racing industry, to make them aware of the range of employment opportunities that exist within the sport and also to provide the students with a well deserved treat for successful completion within a Prince’s Trust xl club.
This unique opportunity to gain an insight into how a day at the races works will commence with an introduction by Cheltenham Communications Manager Andy Clifton and will be followed by a number of sessions with the people who contribute in different ways to the running of a raceday. The students will walk the track with legendary Jump Jockey and Channel 4 presenter John Francome, visit the Weighing Room and accompany the Starter to his position, gaining an exclusive insight into the world of racing.
With more than one million young people not in employment, education or training in the UK, The Prince’s Trust helps disadvantaged young people to overcome the barriers to achieving this and to gain the confidence, skills and motivation needed to find future employment and training opportunities. British Horseracing became involved with the charity through Sport United, a Prince’s Trust initiative which makes links with the governing bodies of UK Sport and other sporting organisations in order to encourage and enable disadvantaged youngsters to become more physically, economically and socially active.
The partnership between the BHA and The Prince’s Trust was launched in November 2008, and aims to reward students who have successfully participated in The Prince’s Trust xl clubs, which are run in schools nationwide for pupils in Years 10 and 11 who are at risk of truanting and underachievement. xl Club members have visited Beverley, Doncaster, Ffos Las, York, Fontwell Park, Newmarket and Down Royal racecourses to date, with many more visits planned.
Nic Coward, Chief Executive of the British Horseracing Authority, said:
“Racing directly employs over 20,000 people, with another 70,000 working in related sectors, so it has a significant impact on communities up and down the country – no other sport employs so many people across such a wide range of jobs and locations. We, as a sport, want to use this network to help young people and we are grateful to the racecourses and industry employees who have been delighted to offer their resources to such a worthy cause.”
Tom Keer, Head of Sport at The Prince’s Trust, also commented:
“We are delighted that racing has become a supporter of The Prince’s Trust. We have seen first-hand how sport can change young lives, helping to develop key workplace skills such as confidence, motivation, teamwork and discipline. Through our partners such as the British Horseracing Authority, we can continue to help thousands of young people through sport.”
Edward Gillespie, Managing Director of Cheltenham Racecourse, said:
“We are delighted to welcome The Prince’s Trust students to Cheltenham Racecourse on the launch of our Open meeting. We hope to be able to show them the work that goes on behind-the-scenes on a race day so that they take away a greater knowledge of the industry and a few ideas about the opportunities that may exist for them within the sport.”
