Gradventure is a fundraising initiative organised by BT graduates. This year, the BT Gradventure Committee chose to support TeenTech, raising money for us, and supporting a number of TeenTech initiatives.
Throughout the last year, Gradventure grads have been supporting us through numerous fundraising activities, including a skydive, raffles, running and walking challenges, games nights and more, raising nearly £10,000 for TeenTech which will help us reach even more young people through our work.
To end the year, and to celebrate the success of Gradventure, a team of grads headed to the Peak District to take part in a day of physical challenges culminating in a 100ft abseil off a disused railway line.
The grads arrived at a hotel in Manchester Piccadilly the night before, which gave them a chance to meet each other face to face before the day of challenges. Due to COVID-19, the majority of them hadn’t had a chance to meet each other in real life.
The next morning, the coach picked the group up early and took them all to the Peak District, arriving at the start of the Monsal Trail. Here, the grads were split into two groups by the tour guides, each headed up by members of the BT Gradventure Committee. Emily, Omar and Hursh formed one of the groups, and Yasimin, Sonum, Nathan and Elena formed the second group.
Each of the groups then hiked separately through beautiful woodland, streams, tunnels, bridges, taking in the amazing views on the route to the abseiling bridge. Yasimin and Sonum’s team made it to the bridge first, taking in a beautiful bakery and a number of scenic stops on their route. Emily and Omar’s group accidentally took a wrong turn and added a few kilometres onto their journey! Their route was accidentally more scenic but they couldn’t afford to take as many beauty stops!
Nearly every grad did the (terrifying!) 100ft abseil and loved it, despite the nerves! It was a great team-building exercise, with the entire group cheering each other on.
After this, the day ended with a softer, more gradual, but still beautiful, hike back to the coach, taking the group back to Manchester. Despite the long day, most of the grads stayed for meals and took the opportunity to spend some quality time with each other after a very strange year.
The grads said that they enjoyed the experience, and had a fantastic and inspiring day in a gorgeous setting with great weather. The teams were so proud of what they had achieved, not just on the day but throughout the fundraising programme, feeling inspired to get involved with Gradventure again next year and to take on more volunteering in general.
We would like to thank every single grad for helping to make the Gradventure programme such a success, and for raising money for TeenTech.
If you would like to make a donation to TeenTech, you can do so by visiting our JustGiving page.
TeenTech is a registered charity, supporting young people in gaining skills, experiences and connections to guide them into contemporary careers and give everyone the chance to reach their full potential.
