To celebrate its 110th birthday, Vimto today embarked on a 110km bike ride, with a special appearance from local football legends, Phil Neville, Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs, raised over £110,000 for Warrington Youth Club (WYC), an OnSide Youth Zone.
In its biggest charity fundraiser yet, 110 cyclists from Vimto, WYC and partners such as Tesco, Princes and KPMG joined forces to take on the gruelling challenge through the Cheshire countryside.
Established in 1952, WYC works to support young people from ages 7 to 25, offering opportunities to gain, increase and develop skills and confidence, to improve their lives and futures.
Vimto CEO, Marnie Millard, said: “Vimto is committed to supporting the education and ambitions of people in the local area. We have thoroughly enjoyed working with Warrington Youth Club for the last 5 years and we look forward to continuing our partnership.”
Ryan Giggs said: “It’s been a fantastic day and great to see Vimto’s commitment to the local community, just as they support development of young football talent at the Salford City FC academy.”
Matty Brennan, a 16-year-old from WYC, participated in tandem with his cycle partner Mark Brocklehurst (chairman of the youth club) after months of training. He commented: “I am so happy to have completed this challenge. The team at the Warrington Youth Club have been brilliant in supporting me for the last year. They have given me opportunities to do amazing activities I could never dream of doing.”
Nick Hopkinson, board member at Warrington Youth Club, added: “All of us at the Youth Club want to say a huge thank you to Vimto for raising this incredible amount of money which will allow the organisation to offer Mentoring to 110 vulnerable children and young people from across Warrington. The Youth Club is about to undertake a massive expansion as the £6.5 million development of the OnSide Warrington Youth Zone on Dallam Lane in Warrington commences in early 2020, where the organisation started almost 70 years ago.”
