3 minute read
United for children on the streets
Rail Aid 2021 has come to a close, so let’s take a look back at all of the amazing events from the year!
Rail Aid 2021 has wrapped up and the team want to say to a huge thank you to all those who have participated.
In 2020, the pandemic wiped out Railway Children’s extensive events programme and continued to affect it last year, including the cancellation of the main fundraiser, The Railway Ball, for the second year running. This left a gap of more than £1 million in funding for Railway Children over two years at a time when the children the charity supports needed their services more than ever.
In 2021, the team brought Rail Aid back for the second year in order to bridge Railway Children’s funding gap so that its vital programmes can continue to support children and families devasted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The rail industry rose to the challenge and raised an incredible amount of over £700,000 for Railway Children! All of these funds will help the charity provide support to vulnerable young people in the UK, India, and East Africa.
Some of the highlights of Rail Aid 2021 included:
The Gala Auction and Live Auctions (sponsored by Colas Rail) and
Railwayana Auction were a smashing success with excellent lots that created bidding wars and contributed almost £200,000 to the fundraising total. The auction will be going ahead this year and the Railway Children team will be on the lookout for donations, so have a think about what your organisation could contribute!
Rail Aid’s British Pullman, a Belmond
Train (sponsored by Porterbrook), embarked on a lavish journey across the Kent countryside where passengers enjoyed a delicious lunch and live entertainment. The trip was a stunning success, raising than £228,000 for Railway Children;
Advance TRS Golf Day had Rail Aid teaming up with Advance TRS for the first annual Charity Golf Day in support of Railway Children. The event was a great success, with teams from the rail industry enjoying a day at the Belfry golf course, and everyone is looking forward to it returning next year;
The Love Train Challenge, sponsored
by WSP, HS1, and Systra, led to teams across the country getting their groove on and submitting their videos for the Love Train Challenge! Avanti West Coast were crowned the winners and you can watch all submissions on the Rail Aid website;
ScotRail Santa Trains: Following updated advice from the Scottish Government, ScotRail had to cancel a majority of the planned Santa Trains in December. In a true show of festive spirit, they donated the planned gifts for train passengers to children’s wards and hospices across Scotland. The Rail Aid team are so thankful to ScotRail for putting so much work into organising the Santa Trains and hope to run them again in the future;
Emirates Festive Cable Cars: Throughout December, Transport for London ran a festive experience on the Emirates Cable Cars with a portion of each cabin sold being donated to Railway Children. Customers received a warm welcome at the Christmasthemed terminal buildings from a festive character and were then taken through priority boarding to one of the specially wrapped festive cabins for a non-stop round trip above the River Thames.
This year UK rail’s biggest fundraiser, The Railway Ball, is returning! The Ball will take place on Friday 25 November 2022 and it’s sure to be the industry event of the season after two years away. Money raised from the Ball in previous years has provided care for more than 270,000 children, helping them before they become entrenched in street life. Early Bird tickets are on sale now and you can purchase them and find information on becoming a sponsor at railwayball.co.uk.
Be on the lookout for further announcements this year about how you can support Railway Children recover from the pandemic. The Rail Aid team want to say a massive thank you to all of the Rail Aid 2021 sponsors, including our media partners Field Consulting and Rail Business Daily. Their contributions made all of the events and challenges this year possible and helped Rail Aid hit such an amazing fundraising total!
