You can support SKIDZ by entering the rally or sponsoring other entrants.

For more information see http://urbanrally.blogspot.com

Sponsor a child a day for a term
If you could find it in your heart to donate £1,135 it would actually sponsor one young person to attend a half-day session per week for one year at our workshops.

How does that make a difference?
Young people learn work-place vocational skills in an adult environment that are transferrable into the world of work. They learn communication skills which improve their self-esteem and confidence; they learn Health and Safety in the work-place; they learn basic mechanics on a variety of vehicles that gives them an introduction into the world of work. Many young people gain recognised qualifications that give them a pathway into further education, apprenticeship and employment. Our track record is excellent – high attendance, low drop-out rates, amazing qualifications and a high level of support locally and nationally.
SKIDZ gives young people a future

What’s in it for you?
Definitely a “feel good” factor, and hopefully a sense of satisfaction in helping a young person off the dole and into work with a positive future ahead. This also means reductions in Government spending on support of the unemployed which directly affects all of us.
There are tax benefits too – if you donate to our charity you can claim tax deductions; we can claim Gift Aid – this way we all win!

Want to know more?
Look at our web site www.skidz.org.uk and give us a call – come and see what we do here, you will be very welcome.

Phone 01494 550008 or e-mail info@skidz.org.uk

Stuart and three friends are taking on the challenge of eating a 72 oz. steak – each!!!!

If you would like to join in the fun from a distance then please click on the link below to sponsor Stuart:-

http://www.justgiving.com/Stuart-Dodds

Eating takes place on 26^th January 2012

For the third consecutive period SKIDZ has been recognised as achieving the required standards to be awarded the Investors in People accreditation. We pride ourselves on being a good company to work for; length of service of our staff is a strong indicator that people enjoy working here. Together we work as a team to ensure that all young people attending can achieve at their highest potential, and in aiming for this we sometimes forget about the well-being of our staff. The visit from the accreditor last Monday gave us all an opportunity to reflect on how we treat each other, how we refresh training, and how we relate and respect each other in our specific roles. The answer seems to be “extremely well” so we are very please to receive the accreditation to prove it – well done team!

http://www.charityjob.co.uk/jobs/221414/head-of-fundraising

SKIDZ are grateful for the support shown by our Patrons at this annual event which contributed to the success of the SKIDZ stand and the whole event which attracted over 11,500 visitors.

Alfie came to SKIDZ in September 2010. He used to live in Somerset but had several unsuccessful placements at secondary schools in the area. He moved to Amersham to live and has gradually re-integrated into Amersham School with support from The Wycombe and Chess Valley Grange before starting at SKIDZ. He is now doing really well and managing his learning difficulties.

Alfie would really like to be a mechanic when he leaves school so SKIDZ is proving good grounding for him. Here at SKIDZ he has demonstrated his interest in motor vehicles, he is a good team player, and works very hard. He attends sessions twice a week and has very regular attendance. Since joining us he has grown in confidence and self-esteem. Aside from motor vehicles Alfie has other interests; he enjoys fishing and plays rugby for Amersham & Chiltern Rugby Club.

The opportunity to do a week of work experience at Mercedes GP PETRONAS Formula One Team’s headquarters was an amazing experience for Alfie. He has returned with a full account of his activities during the week which started on Monday with 2 hours of Health and Safety information, including videos on lifting, etc. He also needed to sign the confidentiality form to protect the highly technical details he would see and work on during his 5 days there.
Next Alfie went on a tour with Peter Hodgkinson – Head of Car Build. He then was given the task of cleaning and polishing the front and rear wings of Michael Schumacher’s and Nico Rosberg’s cars. He met Nico whilst working on the wings. Tuesday saw Alfie cleaning the engine cover and chassis of a car. He took out bolts from a brake cover and cleaned it ready for spraying. After a tour of the paint shop he was shown the gear box and the functions of all the parts; he then had the task of cleaning parts on both race cars. On Wednesday he returned to the paint shop to spray the brake covers he had cleaned, and also to sand and spray other protective shields. He cleaned the floor of Nico’s car. A visit to the wind tunnel gave him the chance to see how aerodynamics are tested which he found very interesting. Thursday and Friday was spent helping to polish and prepare the cars ready to go to Munich. The icing on the cake for Alfie was the chance to meet Ross Brawn on Friday, to say thank you to him for this amazing experience and to get his autograph.

It is clear from Alfie’s recounting of his week what a fantastic opportunity and experience this has been for him – a once in a lifetime chance. Peter Hodgkinson, Mercedes Team Head of Car Build, has given us the following feedback about him:

“Alfie was great fun to have around for a week. He worked well with all the mechanics and was a great help for the short time he was with us. We would welcome him back at anytime and I wish him every success for the future”.

http://tinyurl.com/5wfqbnc

The Mission

The 2000 mile round trip rally kicks off in High Wycombe Buckinghamshire, on June 30th 2011. On the outward journey we will be

taking the Ferry from Dover and over the 3 days will travel through 6 countries from the windmills of Rotterdam, through the volcanic lakes of the Eifel mountains to the famous German race track the Nurburgring ring named the ‘Green Hell’ by famous racing car driver Jackie Stewart. The outward leg of the rally ends in Prague the picturesque party capital of the Czech Republic. Returning home via the picturesque Black Forest High Road over the next 2 days. All in an old banger that cost £200

So, where do you come in?

We need your money!!

In return your company logo will appear on the car. We are also hoping to team up with the Bucks free Press to cover the event. We are also planning to get some driving advice from the Rally legend Paddy Hopkirk who is a proud patron of the charity Skidz.If you have a company then just donate as much as you can afford you too can help change lives.

All donation small or large will gratefully received but especially the LARGE ones! SKIDZ is a fantastic charity and they need our help.

http://www.justgiving.com/MrJobbyThamesGraphics

Steve comes to us with a wealth of experience in raising funds for various well known charities over a period of 12 years, and will spend the next few weeks making contact with our existing supporters as well as meeting and following up new links. Look out for Steve at meetings and events and please make yourself known to him. Steve has local knowledge so is at an advantage from day one. He is confident we can reach the target and is already recruiting volunteers to work with him in his new role. If you think you can help please give him a call on 01494 550008 or contact him on stevegrudgings@skidz.org.uk or 07930 417299.

Steve has some exciting new ideas to share with our supporters and Friends of SKIDZ as you will soon begin to see from flyers that will be winging their way to you; don’t forget to look at the website for updates too!