Daisy’s Dream announced as charity partner for Newbury’s Krazy Races soapbox derby in August

The charity partner for the town’s first soapbox derby has been announced.

Daisy’s Dream won nearly 20 per cent of a public vote to become the headline charity for Newbury’s Krazy Races, which is being run in partnership with Newbury BID.

The free-to-attend soapbox derby will make its debut in the town on Sunday, August 24 and the search is currently on to find the 40 fearless teams that will take on the challenge and race for glory around the town centre racetrack this summer.

Daisy’s Dream is a small, Berkshire-based charity that helps children and young people who have been affected by bereavement, by supporting them in preparing for a loss or working with them following the death of someone important to them. It recently won silver in the People’s Choice Award at The Smiley Charity Film Awards.

Laura Lewis, CEO at the charity, said: “We are thrilled to have been chosen as the headline charity partner for the first ever Krazy Races event in Newbury.

“Knowing that the local community voted for us makes this even more special, and we can’t wait to be part of what promises to be a fantastic day for Newbury.

“As a local charity, we rely on fundraising opportunities like this to help us continue providing essential support to bereaved children and families free of charge.

“We look forward to being part of this fun and exciting day, raising our profile so that people who may need our services know we are there.”

Ben Beardmore-Gray, marketing manager at Newbury BID added: “The local area is home to so many wonderful charities and we were delighted to see that many familiar names had entered.

“Congratulations to Daisy’s Dream on being chosen as the headline charity partner, and we hope the event serves as a great platform for the charity to fundraise and highlight the all the great work they do.

“We also encourage teams and the public to consider working with any of the charities that entered – each group provides much-needed services in the local area and the event is a brilliant opportunity to help support them.”

As part of the event, individuals, charities and business teams are being encouraged to design, build and then race their handcrafted soapbox

Organisers of the event – which is being dubbed as the ‘spiritual successor’ to the town’s Crafty Craft event - promise “wild, wacky races” in the town centre, while also offering the opportunity to raise vital funds for local charities too.

In the first event of its kind in the town, Newbury’s Krazy Races will see a mix of individual, charity and business teams design, build and then race their handcrafted soap box in front of up to 20,000 eager spectators.

It will take over the town on Sunday, August 24 – the August Bank Holiday weekend - and is being run in partnership with Newbury Business Improvement District (BID).

The race route, which will head down Oxford Street and into The Broadway, will feature chicanes, obstacles and thrilling twists and turns.

Alongside the excitement of the races, there will be entertainers, attractions and food stalls all set up in the town centre on the day.

Danny Scoffin, head of brand and strategic development at Krazy Races, said: “We’re excited to bring Krazy Races to Newbury for the first time and are grateful to the local community for selecting Daisy’s Dream as our charity partner.

“With their support, we hope to raise much-needed funds for this fantastic cause.”

If you would like to follow in the footsteps of celebrity competitors, including Maya Jama, YouTuber Chunkz, and stars from The Real Housewives of Cheshire, just head to the website to sign up.

There will be a maximum of 40 teams able to enter the race, which will be run in a knockout style competition with multiple trophies and prizes.