BASET (The Britain-Australia Society Education Trust) is delighted to announce the launch of a new BASET Thoroughbred Endeavour Award in partnership with Godolphin, British Racing School (BRS) and Thoroughbred Industry Careers (TIC) to support deserving young people from Britain and Australia embarking on careers in the equine and racing industries.
This month, the inaugural BASET Thoroughbred Endeavour Award has been made to Grace McBeath, a talented young equestrian from New South Wales. Grace said upon winning the award, “I am really thankful for this amazing opportunity and I look forward to expanding my knowledge internationally. This is a huge change for a girl from the Aussie bush!”
The aim of the programme is to offer participants the chance to further develop their career and gain new skills and experience of international practices. The award provides for an exchange between Australia and UK Thoroughbred industry students to work for 6 months in an iconic stable during peak racing seasons in the UK and Australia. Additionally, the winners will be offered the chance to experience local culture and meet industry leaders in their field. The inaugural award will provide funding to support a six-month racing stable placement organised by The British Racing School which will involve working for Sir Mark Prescott at Heath House Stables and Andrew Balding at Kingsclere Park House Stables, two of the best equipped private training establishments in Britain. Later this year, the opportunity will be reciprocated and a second BASET Thoroughbred Endeavour Award will be made to support a young person from Great Britain who will undertake a placement in Australia, arranged by Thoroughbred Industry Careers.
The BASET Thoroughbred Endeavour Awards form part of the UK based charity’s new Endeavour Career Skills Awards Programme which supports young people from Britain and Australia entering vocational careers. The programme funds internships, apprenticeships and courses that provide real-world industry experience and facilitate an exchange of knowledge and expertise between Britain and Australia.
John May, BASET’s Chair of Trustees commented, “We are thrilled to have partnered with The British Racing School and Thoroughbred Industry Careers to create this incredible opportunity for our award winners, helping them to gain international experience working in racing. We hope this exciting initiative will mark the start of a long-term collaboration between our organisations to support deserving young people from Britain and Australia and strengthen the bilateral bond between the two countries. I would like to thank all the hard work done by Jim Paltridge on behalf of BASET and Diana Cooper of Godolphin, along with Andrew Brathwaite of BRS and Lindy Maurice from TIC in making this award happen.”
Diana Cooper, Strategic Advisor Charities for Godolphin, who facilitated the creation of the new industry award, said “We thank the BASET for choosing to include Thoroughbred Racing in their growing list of Endeavour awards that help young Australians and British by encouraging cultural interaction and industry participation between the two countries. Developing opportunities for young people in the industry is the ethos of Together for Racing International (TfRI) which Godolphin is proud to support.”
For more information, visit www.britain-australia.org.uk/baset