New minibuses open up a world of opportunity for Whitley children

For children across schools in Whitley, today marks the start of a new and exciting era. Aspire2 has fundraised to provide two brand new 16 seater minibuses, for shared use by 11 schools within the Whitley Excellence Cluster.

The minibuses were launched today at The Ridgeway Primary School, with an audience including Mayor Rachel Eden, Cllr Micky Leng, Cllr Alice Mpofu-Coles and staff and children from local schools.

With the support and partnership of the John Sykes Foundation, who donated £15,000 to bring this vision to fruition, Aspire2 has leased the vehicles for five years, with the intention of taking children to trips, activities, and adventures that otherwise they may not be able to access. The minibuses have already been booked for trips to football tournaments, a music festival, theatre productions, and residential trips, with many more activities in the pipeline.

Charlie Clare, Chair of Trustees for Aspire2, is delighted that this project has come to fruition: “These minibuses will make a huge difference to children of Whitley schools. They will make it possible for schools to take whole classes to a host of exciting events and places – in many cases for the very first time. They will have opportunities to learn from a wealth of new experiences and so develop the skills, confidence and aspirations that will help them to grow as people and to aim high for their futures. We hope they will also have lots of fun!”

John Sykes, Founder and Chair of Trustees for the John Sykes Foundation, who was also in attendance at the presentation, agrees: “We are delighted to be supporting this wonderful charity, which serves Whitley, the area my Father was raised, and for which has such a great community spirit. We sincerely hope the two minibuses will open up new opportunities for the children of Whitley, especially after the many restrictions imposed due to Covid. The children were full of energy, excitement, and enthusiasm for their new minibuses, and we cannot wait to hear of their forthcoming adventures.”

Many thanks to Sapna Odlin Photography for photographing this event for us