More than £12,000 has been raised for two local causes at the 2019 Barclays Jersey Boat Show.
Barclays, who organised the fundraising activities at the Show, chose two charities to receive the funds this year; Girlguiding Jersey and Jersey Scouts Association.
The two charities support around 1,600 locals by helping them to develop important life skills, offer outdoor adventures and a space for young people to be themselves.
Michele Peace, Island Commissioner, said: “The team and I at Girlguiding Jersey are incredibly grateful to Barclays and the visitors of this year’s Boat Show. £12,000 is an amazing amount of money and we plan to use it to support girls who would like to take part in trips away from Jersey. We will also invest in assisting our units to have the full range of Girlguiding’s new programme resources which we launch this year.”
Ian Silvester, Deputy Island Commissioner, said: “This money will have a real impact on our operation and the young people of Jersey. We plan to use the donation to develop our programme to prepare more young people with skills for life.”
Over 35,000 people attended the Show over the bank holiday weekend. The largest free event in the Channel Islands showcased Jersey’s marine leisure industry, the Show gave local businesses a platform to meet their customers, both new and old. It also celebrated a decade of the ‘Barclays Duck’ and featured the popular hook-a-duck game, which is where most of the money was raised.
Paul Savery, Managing Director of Barclays in Jersey, said: “It was fantastic to see so many visitors at this year’s Show and we’re delighted with the sum raised for Girlguiding Jersey and Jersey Scouts.We’re proud to have supported the show for the last 10 years and to have raised more than £100,000 for local causes in that time.
“We’re committed to supporting the local community and it was a pleasure to meet so many people at our marquee and talk to them about the various initiatives we carry out in the island.”
This year not only marked Barclays’ 10th anniversary of sponsoring the Boat Show, but also the last year to feature the duck mascot in its current plastic form. Barclays has made the decision to stop producing plastic ducks as part of its support in making the Show plastic free in the years ahead. Globally, Barclays is striving to minimise its impact on the environment by reducing its carbon footprint by 80% by 2025.
The Barclays Jersey Boat Show took place in St Helier from 4thto 6thMay 2019. The event attracted more than 35,000 visitors.