• York Racecourse hosts a visit from Buttershaw Business and Enterprise College, Bradford
• 12 youngsters have exclusive behind-the-scenes access as part of a Racing Experience Day.
British Horseracing’s link with The Prince’s Trust – announced in November last year – gets off the ground with a Racing Experience Day hosted by York Racecourse and the British Horseracing Authority on Friday 12th June.
12 students from Buttershaw Business & Enterprise College in Bradford will take part in this project which aims to show the opportunities that exist within the sport. The students will gain behind-the-scenes access to show what different jobs make up a day at the races, to include a Q&A session on the demands of being an elite sportsman with former champion jockey Kevin Darley and a trip to the Stewards Room with Gold Cup winning rider Robert Earnshaw.
With over one million young people not in work, education or training in the UK, The Prince’s Trust helps disadvantaged young people to overcome their barriers and gain the confidence, skills and motivation to get back into work, education or training.
Racing became involved with youth charity The Prince’s Trust through ‘Sport United’ which links the governing bodies of UK sport, sports venues, sponsors, equipment suppliers, retailers and organisations involved with sport hospitality and encourage and enable disadvantaged young people to become more physically, economically and socially active.
Racing pledged to help The Trust’s key Team programme, a 12-week personal development course for unemployed 16-25-year-olds and its xl clubs, run in schools nationwide for pupils in years 10 and 11 who are at risk of truanting and underachievement.
BHA Chief Executive Nic Coward said:
“Racing directly employs over 20,000 people with another 70,000 working in related sectors and is therefore has a big impact on communities up and down the country. No other sport employs so many people across such a variety of jobs and across such a wide area. The sport wants to use its network to help young people and we are grateful to the courses and people who have been more than happy to offer their resources to such a worthy cause.”
Kate Burt, from The Prince’s Trust, said:
“We are delighted to have Racing as part of Sport United. We believe that the sport can make a tremendous contribution towards changing the lives of disadvantaged and unemployed young people in need of work, education or training.”
James Brennan, York Racecourse’s Head of Marketing said:
“We’re fortunate to know the excitements and satisfactions of being involved with a busy raceday and so are delighted to be working with the Authority to provide this opportunity for The Prince’s Trust to demonstrate a raceday to the group.”
11th June 2009
For more information please contact:
British Horseracing Authority: Sarah Nuttall – 07858 187713 or Jon Ryan 07836 256704 (both in attendance at York)
York Racecourse: James Brennan, Head of Marketing and Sponsorship, tel: 01904 683940; [email protected]
The Prince’s Trust: Kate Evans, PR Officer Tel: 020 7543 1234
[email protected]
11th June 2009
Notes for Editors:
1. More information on the Authority’s Community Work can be found at:
https://www.britishhorseracing.com/images/inside_horseracing/media/BHA_Community_Impact_Doc.pdf
2. More information on York Racecourse’s Community Work can be found at:
http://www.yorkracecourse.co.uk/about-york-racecourse/in-the-community/index
3. More information on The Prince’s Trust can be found at http://www.princes-trust.org.uk/
4. There will be media opportunities for photos or camera crews. The trip will start at 9.30am and conclude at 3pm. Please phone Sarah Nuttall (number above) on the day.
5. The Prince’s Trust was founded by HRH The Prince of Wales in 1976. From a family with a long and famous interest in racing, the Prince was an amateur rider himself on the racecourse and maintains an interest in the sport by owning (with wife The Duchess of Cornwall) ROYAL SUPERLATIVE, a three year old filly trained by Ralph Beckett. The filly has raced once in 2009, on 25th May 2009, appropriately enough in Wales, at Chepstow Racecourse.
