A group of six from Avanti West Coast have cycled from Agra to Jaipur through India's Golden Triangle to raise money for the Railway Children charity.
The journey took the team six days to complete, covering 450km (280 miles) of Rajasthan, through some of the most breath-taking views and spectacular scenery in the world.
Along the way, they stopped off at major help centres set up by the Railway Children charity to see how the money they were raising was being put to use helping young people at three of the busiest stations in New Delhi.
They also visited a school run by the charity where they presented the children with new pencils and colouring books.
Railway Children volunteers collaborate with local police forces, together they find children who have run away from home by travelling on trains.
This makes them extremely vulnerable to a host of exploitations, including grooming and trafficking. The charity tries to reunite children with their family, but if they can't they are taken into care and looked after by charity.
Those that took part in the bike ride from Avanti West Coast were Rob Taylor, Natalie Popat, Jim Lindsey, Ryan Evans, Katie Smith and Kathy Earl.
Eight other members from other Train Companies who were also taking part in the cycle to raise money joined them.
Overall, they raised £10,000, which is equal to covering the costs of helping to keep the charity running for four months.
It was an incredible and humbling experience to be a part of. While cycling through the villages on the route, we were greeted by so many happy locals who waved and wanted pictures with us. Seeing first hand the work that the Railway Children do really brought home the importance of the money we have raised from our cycle challenge, which in itself was tough yet really enjoyable. I encourage others to get involved with future opportunities!”
Rob Taylor, Avanti West Coast Food and Beverage Lead
I had the honour of supporting the Ride India challengers and I am in awe of their grit and determination to not only complete the challenge, but to raise as much for Railway Children as possible in doing so – all with the biggest smiles on their faces! They faced 32-degree heat, driving rain and thick fog, whist dodging camels, cycling round goats and stopping for cattle along the 450km route. It costs around £28,000 to fund our entire project across Delhi Sarai Rohilla railway, which is where we visited as part of the trip, so this money makes a considerable difference to the work we do.”
Cat Howourth, Events Manager at Railway Children
The Railway Children Charity works across the UK, India, and Tanzania with the vision of creating a world where no child is lost to the perils of the streets.
Their relations with local authorities across a broad range of transport networks ensures a head start in reaching vulnerable children before they potentially come to harm.
They bring children and young people off the streets and welcome them into a family-based caring and nurturing environment.
Children are provided with education and solutions to problems that they are facing, with each individual child being helped through one-to-one support at the charity's Children's Centres, to endeavour that children have a bright sustainable future.
In the UK the charity works with TOCs, rail agencies, local government and the public to promote awareness and the issues that cause children to run away from home, while delivering a policy that brings children hopes and prosperity for the future to ensure no child is forgotten.
