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The Prince's Trust
With over one million young people not in work, education or training in the UK, youth charity The Prince’s Trust helps disadvantaged young people to overcome barriers and to gain the confidence, skills and motivation needed to find future employment and training opportunities.
British Horseracing became involved with the charity in November 2008 through Sport United, a Prince’s Trust Programme which links 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.
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 big 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 more than happy to offer their resources to such a worthy cause.”
Learn more about The Prince's Trust, or visit the Prince's Trust website
RACING EXPERIENCE DAYS
As part of its involvement in the Prince's Trust the BHA has organised a number of Racing Experience Days, aiming to show youngsters the variety of opportunities that exist within the sport.
Newmarket, 16th October
A group of 14 students from Westbourne Sports College in Ipswich attended the first day of the illustrious Champions’ Meeting at Newmarket on Friday 16th October, 2009. The pupils were given exclusive access to the racecourse in order to develop their understanding of the British Racing industry and to learn more about the opportunities that exist for them when they leave college to venture into the world of employment.
This unique opportunity to gain an insight into how a day at the races works commenced with a media conference which was led by Newmarket’s Managing Director, Stephen Wallis, and involved participation from Champion Flat Jockey Ryan Moore, leading Trainers John Gosden, John Ryan and David Simcock, as well as former Champion Jockey, Kevin Darley.
Other activities throughout the day included a Q&A session with Jockey and Prince’s Trust ambassador Richard Kingscote, an interactive sports photography workshop and sessions with both the Stipendiary Stewards and the Clerk of the Scales, responsible for raceday regulation and for weighing the jockeys.
The students were also delighted to be able to meet and request autographs from some of racing’s best-known personalities, including Frankie Dettori and John McCririck, and had a fantastic and exciting day.
Stephen Wallis, Managing Director of Newmarket Racecourse stated: “We were delighted to welcome The Prince’s Trust and students from Westbourne Sports College to Newmarket Racecourse and to show them the work that goes into making a day at the races possible. We hope that they will take away a greater knowledge of the industry and a few ideas about the opportunities that may exist for them within the sport.”
Fontwell Park, 24th September
Following a successful launch at York racecourse, The Prince’s Trust continued their association with racing by inviting members of The Prince’s Trust xl club from Testwood Sports College to be part of another Racing Experience Day at Fontwell Park on 24th September.
The students gained exclusive access to the racecourse, to see what different jobs go into making a day at the races happen, from the Security Officer at the racecourse stables to the Clerk of the Scales, responsible for weighing the jockeys in before and after a race.
The students also had the opportunity to speak to 14-time and current Champion Jump Jockey, A P McCoy, on the demands of being an elite sportsman.
The students, though, were as impressed with rising star Rhys Flint as the legendary AP! Rhys was on hand to give the boys a few tips from the racing post and to pose with the girls for some photos, and having developed his own fan club, he was cheered on (by the girls especially), when leaving the parade ring for the first race.
Needless to say, all eyes were on Rhys in the first. The students then got to watch a Chase and were glued to the action. With McCoy falling, another being unseated and a thrilling finish, there was plenty to keep the students entertained.
The day proved to be a great success for both The Prince’s Trust and racing. The students received a great insight into the sport and many of them were genuinely interested, asking lots of questions. They got to see the action close-up, talk to top jockeys and enjoyed a day out that normally they may not have had access to.
Beccy Green, Fontwell Park Racecourse’s Commercial Manager said: “We are delighted to welcome The Prince’s Trust and students from Testwood Sports College to Fontwell Park Racecourse and to show them the work that goes into making a day at the races possible. We hope that they will take away a greater knowledge of the industry and possibly, a few ideas about what opportunities may exist for them within the sport.”
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