Racing's national day of volunteering is fast-approaching, this year taking place on Thursday 25th May. This episode runs through the many benefits of volunteering, and provides some inspiring ideas from our panellists.

Panellists:

Eleanor Boden
Chief Executive, Scottish Racing Academy
Eleanor is responsible for the development and management of the Scottish Racing Academy provision, the teams as well as key education and industry partners. Eleanor's main focus is to enhance recruitment strategies and employer engagement. Eleanor is involved in a multitude of industry-wide initiatives due to her enthusiasm for inclusion, diversity, teaching and learning.
In 2022, Eleanor and the Scottish Racing team won the Racecourse Association Community Award for their initiative during Racing Together Community Day last May.


John Gilbert
Chief Executive, The Racing Centre
John is South African born-and-bred with a passion for conservation and previous roles at the African Conservation Trust and South Africa's largest oil producer, Sasol. John met his wife within the horseracing community in South Africa, moving to the UK in 2014 where he worked as a data analyst, then setting up a commercial cleaning company, before joining the Racing Centre in 2018.
The Racing Centre is an inclusive community hub in the heart of Newmarket that heroes racing and stud staff but welcomes and supports the entire community. John is also Trustee of Newmarket Open Door, an important local charity that was formed from a Churches Together initiative when a group of people wanted to do something more about homelessness in the district. John plays an important role coordinating volunteering activity in Newmarket as part of Racing Together Community Day.
Find out more about The Racing Centre.

Karen Pengilley
CEO, Kate's Home Nursing
Kate’s Home Nursing is a Cotswolds-based charity, employing registered nurses to care for people in their own homes through the last stage of illness and offering support for families.
Karen worked for many years for a global IT company providing software for the airline industry, where one of her better-known projects was the worldwide introduction of electronic ticketing. Karen joined the charity part-time to help out with administration, and her role developed to CEO over the next few years.
Kate's Home Nursing was a beneficiary of Racing Together Community Day activity last year. Find out more about Kate's Home Nursing here.

Find out more and get involved at: https://www.racingtogether.co.uk/racing-together-community-day/