On Tuesday 17th May 2016, 100 taxi drivers gave up a day’s work to drive 200 ‘special needs’ children on the London Taxidrivers’ Charity for Children’s famous Woburn Taxi Safari. The excited children were collected from three different schools in North West London, Woodfield, JCOSS and Northway, and were treated to a wonderful fun packed day filled with non-stop fun and laughter.
A buzz of excitement filled the air on arrival at Woburn, as for many children it was their first ride in a black taxi, let alone the treat of going On Safari. As soon as the three separate convoys arrived, half of the convoy headed straight for the Road Safari, whilst the others went straight into the Safari Lodge Restaurant to enjoy a hearty lunch. At 1pm it was then the turn of the Road Safari group to go for lunch, whilst the children who had eaten were taken on the Road Safari, which worked very well. On the Road Safari the children were able to see many of their favourite big animals, such as such as lions, tigers, elephants, bears, rhinos, giraffes, monkeys, zebras and bison, but it proved to be the monkeys that stole the show jumping on the taxis, much to the children’s delight, with the drivers were looking very worried at the thought of any possible damage!
The rest of the afternoon was left for everyone to sample what was on offer, the great Foot Safari, where the children get closer to the smaller animals, the Swan pedal boats, the Great Woburn Railway, the Avery and the Mammoth Play Ark for indoor fun. Some chose to go back round the Road Safari again, as it was possible to go round as many times as you wanted. At 4pm the weary children, drivers and helpers returned to the Restaurant for tea and great excitable discussions could be heard about the animals the children had just seen.
The Fund’s Hon. Chairman, Sim Yiannikaris, was pleased to be presented at Woburn with a cheque for £3,000 from Inland Homes and we are deeply grateful to them for kindly part sponsoring the outing. We also thank Ink Recruitment for their kind donation of £2,000 which went towards the drivers’ fuel.
We would also like to give grateful thanks to the following:
The Management and Staff at Woburn, His Grace The Duke of Bedford for his hospitality, ITV Anglia for their coverage, the Metropolitan Police for ensuring we got on the motorway safely, The Bedfordshire Constabulary for getting us on and off the motorway, the Hertfordshire Constabulary for keeping an eye on us on the motorway, Brent Borough Police, Kavanah Motor Group, Welsh Harp Safer Neighbourhood Team, Ears Radio for providing the two way radios, the Red Cross, Cost-co for supplying the water, Sainsbury’s (Sue, Shirley and Trudie) for the tea, coffee, biscuits and cake and for helping with the children
Last, but not least our grateful thanks go to the wonderful drivers for giving up a day’s work in these difficult times ensuring the children had an amazing and unforgettable day, as without the drivers these outings would not be possible. We also thank their helpers and anyone else who contributed towards the day. The children had a brilliant time and the smiles on their faces said it all. Roll on our next legendary outing to Southend-on-Sea on 13th July!
Raymond Levy
(Press Officer)