Investors have confirmed support for a new Community Interest Company in Summerbridge.
The project is the brainchild of Alison Lowndes and will be employing 5 people in full-time positions from the area, KO2 Adventures will launch in February 2012 thanks to the Key Fund Yorkshire and a specialist school in Sedburgh, Cumbria.
Operating alongside the Foremost School, which is relocating from Sedburgh to the ex-MOD Forest Moor estate, KO2 will provide alternative education to young people from the area struggling in mainstream schools, or already NEET; Not in Education, Employment or Training.
Using zero-emission electric dirtbikes as an engagement tool, there are also plans for the North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service to run their award-winning LIFE courses on site too.
Founder, Alison Lowndes commented:
Since 2008 I’ve been pulling together support and collaboration from across the county for organisations and authorities to work together to solve the problem of anti-social behaviour leading to crime and unemployment.
Complex behavioural, emotional or social difficulties can all factor in why a young person starts to fall behind in school and social enterprise is the only medium able to offer those kids more support in these difficult economic times.
We use the bikes simply to re-engage, add some spark back to learning, combining the dirt-track and workshop activities with accredited life and IT components.
Since 2006 I’ve been running a charity that assists with sustainable development in developing communities around the world. I figured it was time to focus on my own now.
Delays with the site have been frustrating to the project, but a launch event is now being planned and the bikes should be arriving from Zero Motorcycles in time for Christmas. Zero emission means just that – no emissions – no noise – no gears – no clutch. Powered by battery packs the bikes are the best on the market and offer a glimpse of the future of powertrain technology, something the students will be trained in too.