Andy Ridout, managing director of Advance Training & Recruitment Services, has announced that he will take part in a trifecta of fundraising challenges in 2015, starting in March with a trek to the base camp at Mount Everest in aid of Railway Children.

In little over a year, Andy has managed to raise more than £13,500 as a result of his impressive Ironman victory in late 2013 and the Tour de Yorkshire sporting event, cycling the first stage of the Tour de France with colleague Paul Merton. The recruitment chief is now determined to add to that remarkable tally and aims to raise more than £6,500 in 2015, topping the grand total up to an extraordinary £20,000.

As well as climbing up Everest, Andy plans on cycling a thigh-burning 302 kilometres through mountainous Welsh countryside in an event aptly dubbed the ‘Dragon Devil’ in June, whilst late 2015 will see Andy relay swimming through the English Channel for Cancer Research UK; a year long mega-triathlon!

Following TV’s Brian Blessed at this year’s Roundhouse networking event dinner, Andy delivered a rousing speech on behalf of Railway Children, urging rail executives from across the industry to join him in a once in a lifetime excursion in aid of an incredible cause.

Resting at 17,575ft above sea level, Everest’s Base Camp is the famous camping plain with breathtaking views of the Nepalese Himalayas. The expedition is expected to take around 12 days to complete, with Andy and company trekking more than 113 kilometres.

A previous expedition to Mount Kilimanjaro organised by Railway Children raised more than £194,000 and it is hoped that next year’s total will be even higher.

Railway Children is an international children’s charity that works to reach homeless children on the streets of the UK, East Africa and India. In the UK alone, a child runs away from home every five minutes, forced to flee as a result of poverty, abuse, violence or neglect. ‘That’s a frightening statistic that requires immediate attention’ says Andy.

‘As a father of four myself, hearing some of the horror stories that these children live on a day-to-day basis is extremely harrowing. The innocence of children is a priceless commodity and one which is cruelly taken away by those who seek only to coerce and exploit. For those of us who have children, it’s a cause that hits close to home as we often forget how unfortunate many other children are in this world.’

Andy was recently nominated for the coveted ‘David Maidment Award for Charity’ at this year’s RailStaff Awards, by Dave Ellis, corporate partnerships manager at Railway Children. His nomination came as a result of the continued fundraising
and awareness that he has generated for the charity over the past few years, namely from the Ironman which created a huge amount of buzz throughout the industry.

‘I’m delighted to have become a finalist for this prestigious award two years running now. We are very proud of our corporate partnership with Railway Children and will continue fundraising and generating awareness wherever and whenever we can.’

Andy’s determination and commitment is evident for all to see. His rail recruitment and training consultancy, Advance-TRS, now turns over in excess of £5 million per year, recruiting 20 in-house staff at its new Guildford-based headquarters. ‘We are now working very closely with the industry’s biggest contractors on the UK’s biggest projects; I’m extremely excited for what we have planned in 2015 and relish the challenges that lie ahead.’

Andy will be carrying a giant banner to the base camp at Everest. There are limited sponsorship opportunities to add your company’s logo to this banner and have it proudly lifted 17,000ft high in the Himalayas.

Photographs of Andy holding the banner will be used in numerous press releases, social media and e-mail marketing campaigns, so it is a fantastic opportunity to benefit from some great PR whilst saving the lives of children worldwide.

To discuss sponsorship opportunities, call Andy directly on 01483 361 061 or e-mail ar@advance-trs.com

Donate before Andy’s expedition in March by visiting his fundraising page today at http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AndyRidout