www.racecourseassociation.co.uk February 2020 updatenewsletter CONTENTS Welcome 03 Community Engagement 05 06 Carlisle Support Services 06 As Proud as Ponte 07 'Go North' 09 RCA Medical, Racing & Turf Conf. 10 RCA Technical Group 11 Racecourse Groundstaff Couses 11 Badges & Pass 2019 12 Racegoers Club 13 Five Minutes of Fame 15 GBRI 16 Racing to School 17 Racing Together 18 Bath Racecourse 19 Racing Foundation 20 RaceTech 21 ROA 22 Britbet 22 TBA 23 Watt Fences 25 Duralock 26 Job Board 27 Racing TV PJA ProAm 28 Diary Dates / Contributors / Staff 30 Contact List 31 09 18 19 2 | RCA Update Newsletter 2020 Back to content page WELCOMEWords by Paul Swain the Showcase Seminar in 2018 as Another of the sport’s new initiatives the Beverley Racecourse team took to embrace inclusivity was on display the ingenious move of including a at Ascot at the recent Carlisle Support sign language interpreter within their Services Innovation Lab where Joanna presentation to share their award- Wales discussed the royal track’s winning deaf-friendly raceday. approach to customer inclusion in a keynote speech. Full details, plus notes The reason this is so prevalent is that from other speakers, are included in the at the recent Grand National weights coming pages. launch, Aintree ambassador Laura Wright’s stunning performance of Ever in the quest of knowledge, our Imagine was accompanied by the Racecourse Services Team have Liverpool Signing Choir (and ITV’s Ed recently returned from Doncaster Chamberlin!) who were able to interpret after hosting the RCA’s multiday the lyrics to the audience. You can view Medical, Veterinary, Racing and Turf the footage here. Management Conference. This three- day event is a significant forum for Such gestures demonstrate how the medical, vetinerary, turf management sport is keen to promote inclusive and racing professionals to gather and initiatives such as the LSC at the highest Do you know what the fourth most share best practice, not to mention host level. Community engagement and common tongue in Britain is? the annual blow football tournament. social inclusion run hand in hand, and in Me neither, but after some research it February’s Update we’re proud to share You can read all the latest from across turns out that British Sign Language details of racecourses’ community the worlds of racecourses and the wider Update is currently the fourth most popularly engagement initiatives which have sport, in February’s . used language across the nation. continued to grow, positively impacting This is also akin to what we learnt at 100,000s of lives in the process. Imagine: Laura Wright and the Liverpool Signing Choir perform at the Randox Health Grand National Weights Launch 3 | RCA Update Newsletter 2020 Back to content page NEWS FROM THE RCA The latest from Community Engagement, RCA Technical Group, Racecourse Groundstaff Courses and the Racegoers Club. 4 | RCA Update Newsletter 2020 Back to content page BRITISH RACECOURSES SHARE SIGNIFICANT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT FOOTPRINT • Over £2.2m fundraised and donated through racecourse charitable activity during 2019 for 250+ charities • 455 racecourse team members volunteered 3,100+ hours • 10,382 free tickets were claimed through Tickets for Troops • Racing’s national day of volunteering, Racing Together Community Day saw 65 racing teams volunteering in their local area Racing Together and the Racecourse were hosted at racecourses. activity has been growing across racing, Association (RCA) are delighted to and to see this evidenced in these The survey revealed that 64% of publish details of the 2019 racecourse results is brilliant. respondents have an established audit on community engagement community programme, with 89% “We are proud to support and showcase activity. discussing community and CSR racing’s community engagement Over 90% of British racecourses have reports at a senior level. Community activity and look forward to continuing shared details of last year’s community partnerships are now commonplace to help racecourses and racing engagement activities as part of the - 80% in 2019. Almost three quarters businesses to be a force for good in annual survey, which covered topics of respondents donate excess food their local communities this year. Racing such as volunteering, fundraising, and flowers to local good causes when Together Community Day, racing’s donations raised and charity fixtures are abandoned. national day of volunteering, takes place partnerships. on Thursday 7th May.” • Links to individual case studies Two stand-out examples of racing’s here: http://www.racingtogether. Paul Swain, Brand & Experience Manager contribution to community causes co.uk/case-studies/ at the RCA, commented: “The Racing are York Racecourse’s established Together audit has given us a multitude • Link to photos and videos from Macmillan Raceday, which raised over of good stories which demonstrate 2019 community engagement £600,000 last year, and the Magnolia that as well as being first-class sporting activity: https://www.dropbox. Cup at Goodwood, which was a huge venues, British Racecourses can com/sh/15lmhc1ii00y1c4/ success in promoting the charity’s work leverage the power of racing to serve as dwm4m8pS6p8gJuK6V1ijBa?dl=0 and by contributing almost £200,000 in hubs which benefit the interests of their funds for Wellbeing of Women. • View and download the Racing local communities. Together brochure showcasing Almost 50,000 tickets were donated “Alongside Racing Together, the RCA racing’s community engagement to the charity Tickets for Troops, and is excited to continue to work with activity here: http://www. racecourses routinely support their local our member racecourses to promote racingtogether.co.uk/resources/ charities and causes in this way. Racing community engagement and share to School welcomed a record 15,000 Lucy Gurney, Community Engagement both the significant impact and fantastic young people across 372 activity Manager at Racing Together said: “We stories generated with the nation.” learning days, the majority of which know that community engagement 5 | RCA Update Newsletter 2020 Back to content page ASCOT RACECOURSE STAR IN THE 2020 CARLISLE SUPPORT SERVICES INNOVATION LAB The 2020 CSS Innovation Lab took place at Ascot Racecourse and brought together speakers from across the sports industry to encourage innovation and collaboration. From within racing Ascot’s Head of Operations and Events, Joanna Wales, introduced the seminar to The Ascot Way, explaining how bringing a common purpose to the army of casual workers during Royal Ascot had helped to transform staff morale along with the customer experience journey. From the Ascot Awards to the mid-week motivational videos and staff welfare stations Joanna’s open and honest presentation highlighted exactly what they had done to engage with their Sir Clive Woodward presents on the DNA of a Champion workforce and reduce attrition rates during the five-day Royal Meeting. the day former Olympic Rower Alex a racecourse be chosen to host Partridge spoke about the highs and the event and to listen to Joanna The keynote speaker of the seminar lows of his career in professional sports share the learnings from Ascot’s was the 2003 Rugby World Cup winning and the challenges he had to overcome staff engagement programme to coach Sir Clive Woodward. Sir Clive’s on and off the water. the delegates and businesses in presentation, entitled The DNA of a attendance. The presentations from The RCA’s Brand & Experience Champion, drew on his vast knowledge Sir Clive Woodward and Alex Partridge Executive Matt Jones commented and experience from the worlds of were inspirational and helped to bring a “It was brilliant to attend the CSS professional sport and business to completely fresh perspective to team Innovation Lab at Ascot Racecourse showcase the characteristics that all engagement and staff mindset." champions need to exhibit. Later in alongside a host of other racecourse representatives. It was great to see Joanna Wales, Head of Operations & Events at Ascot Racecourse introduces delegates to The Ascot Way and highlights what they’re doing to become a more accessible venue 6 | RCA Update Newsletter 2020 Back to content page AS PROUD AS PONTE— SHOWCASE CHAMPIONS 2019 Hammill has other developments on his there is a succession plan in place, but gates for the first time in 2020 on 7th mind, especially after being invited to we can’t get there while I’m doing all the April. present Pontefract’s vision at a seminar marketing. Amber has no background organised by Horse Racing Ireland in in racing, which we thought would be a “One of the things that didn’t really Kilkenny in January. benefit. We want her to bring in fresh dawn on us immediately was the ideas from outside, which we can use or pressure that comes with winning “It was quite daunting,” he says. “I wasn’t adapt for racing.” Showcase,” he says. “While we ordinarily only representing Pontefract but also have ideas, a marketing plan and the RCA and its champions award. I’m Hunt will eventually look at ways of improvements we want to make year relatively new to speaking at events expanding Pontefract’s non-raceday on year, we now have a lot of eyes on us, such as this, and certainly not going solo business, Hammill adds, saying: “At the watching these improvements, and we Norman Gundill took the plaudits says. “I keep thinking someone is going More than 500 people were needed for 45 minutes to an hour. I did a practice moment we’re like a shop that only have to uphold our end of the bargain and gave the first interview when to turn up and say, ‘OK, you’ve had it for to set the record, and with the help of and it only took about 35 minutes, but opens 16 days a year, yet we’ve got by continuing to push forward and do Pontefract Racecourse was crowned a couple of months, now’s the time to pre-meeting advertising, the final tally once I got started, they couldn’t shut fantastic facilities, we’re in an amazing exciting things.