Staff from Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust will be competing in the annual Bradford Dragon Boat Festival to raise vital funds for the Trust’s charity, Better Lives. Teams will once again congregate at Roberts Park to race the dragon on Sunday 2 July 2023, joining in the celebration for the NHS 75th birthday.

The Care Trust currently has two sponsored teams, one team from the Trust’s Estates and Facilities team and the other from the Trust charities’ corporate sponsors, P.E.C Contractors. Both teams will be competing against 45 other teams in the multi-charity championship. The Trust will be raising money for its own charity Better Lives, which uses donations to fund a wide variety of additional activities to support patients and carers.

Emma Clarke, Energy, Waste and Sustainability Manager at the Trust, said: “As a team we are delighted to be participating in the Bradford Dragonboat Race 2023 to raise money for our Trust charity, Better Lives. We see first-hand how important charitable funds are to enrich the care we provide to our patients and services users as well as supporting staff well-being. Participating in this tough physical challenge will require hard work and coordination from the team, but knowing we’re supporting a great charity will help motivate us as we paddle, hopefully to victory.”

Each dragon boat team is made up of 16 paddlers and a drummer. The teams will race over a course of 200 meters, starting just beyond the cricket pavilion and finishing in front of the crowds in Roberts Park. Each team will have a minimum three timed races, where their single fastest time only will count for grand final qualification.

Marketing Manager of P.E.C Contractors, Penny Doherty, said: “With the 2023 Dragon Boat Race coming up, P.E.C. are delighted to be joining the Better Lives Charity for the second year running, and the team is raring to go, with training starting soon we are determined to beat last year’s 8th place result.

“P.E.C. are proud to be supporting the Better Lives Charity at this event, with all money raised been spent on improving the physical and mental wellbeing of their patients.”

Along with the dragon boat racing, there will also be ethnic and international food vendors each serving their diverse range of foods, drinks outlets, market stalls and a whole host of traders, some of which will have travelled from overseas just to be at this festival.

If you want to enter a team and join in the fun, please email Better Lives charity: betterlivescharity@bdct.nhs.uk.

The charity raises funds to enhance patient care and go over and above the core services offered. Find out more about the charity: www.bdct.nhs.uk/better-lives-charity/. For more information, please see the events website: https://www.bradforddragonboatfestival.co.uk/.