A team from national telecom provider, TalkTalk Business, is preparing for a gruelling 270 mile bike ride which starts tomorrow to raise funds for registered charity Ambitious about Autism; nearly 40 miles more than their same efforts last year!
Director of major projects Raj Kalia will be leading the 11–strong cycling convoy as it sets off from TalkTalk Business’ contact centre in Preston on Friday, bound for its premises in Shepherd’s Bush, London as part of the company’s ‘Giving Something Back’ initiative.
The group – hoping to reach its final destination in four days – is aiming to improve on the impressive £20,000 raised for the charity by their 231 mile tour through the UK last year. To help reach this ambitious target, a page has been activated for donations at https://mydonate.bt.com/teams/teamtalktalk2012
Raj was also responsible for last year’s cycling troupe. On this year’s attempt, he said: “the rest of the team and I were so proud of how everything went last year – it was the biggest physical challenge a lot of us had ever undertaken. This year, though, we’re ready to push ourselves even further, especially for such a worthy cause as Ambitious about Autism.
“We have some very generous sponsors including Fujitsu, Ericsson, Click Travel, CSi, Juniper, MDS, Ericsson, Tata, Tech Mahindra, SSE Telecoms and Geo. In fact, our overall group is even joined by two riders from Fujitsu – we’re delighted they could join us, especially following our recent successful collaboration for the Post Office.
“Nevertheless, despite the fantastic amount of funds we’ve already been able to secure, we’re increasing the amount of miles, so we’d love to better how much we raised in 2011.”
Ambitious about Autism is the national charity for children and young people with autism. It is committed to improving opportunities for people with autism by providing services, raising awareness and influencing government policy. Founded as TreeHouse in 1997, the charity runs a special school for young children with autism at the purpose built Pears National Centre for Autism Education.
Anne Shinkwin, Director of Fundraising at Ambitious about Autism, said:“We wish all the team the very best of luck for this amazing challenge and a quick recovery afterwards.
“We’re truly grateful for everything TalkTalk Business continues to do to support Ambitious about Autism, the company has been committed to our partnership for over ten years.”
The Giving Something Back scheme allows all of TalkTalk’s 3,500 staff to take a day out of their normal schedule to help a range of local and national charities, including British Red Cross, Marie Curie and the Prince’s Trust.
Charles Bligh, TalkTalk Business’ Managing Director, said: “We’re proud of the Giving Something Back initiative, as an opportunity for the company to make a difference for the causes our employees really value.
“We all wish the team of 11 well – their dedication and efforts exemplify what Giving Something Back is all about.”
Donations can be made via: https://mydonate.bt.com/teams/teamtalktalk2012