Famous rally driver and Monte Carlo winner, Paddy Hopkirk MBE, visited our Wycombe Campus earlier this month to revisit the commemorative plaque which honours his work with young people and the motor industry.
Fifteen years ago, Paddy was asked to help with the charity ‘SKIDZ’, which focussed on helping young people with disadvantaged backgrounds and keeping them off the streets by delivering workshops providing training in engineering to fix cars.
Paddy said he ‘felt very honoured to be part of it’, and worked alongside Ross Brawn, a famous Formula 1 mechanic who ran the F1 teams. He said ‘We had a great team of people in the charity. I gave a lot of time it and enjoyed it very much.’ Paddy even received an award in recognition of his efforts in the charity and automotive industry. Following this, Paddy opened the SKIDZ Wycombe Auto Training Centre in 2016, and a plaque was put commemorate him.
Paddy added, ‘The Charity Skidz was then taken over, or saved by the College, and I thought the plaque may have been thrown away, so was delighted to discover that it had been saved and displayed in the new motor vehicle workshop on the Wycombe campus! I’m very honoured to be photographed with it again.’
If you’re interested in learning more about our Motor Vehicle courses click here, or register for Open Day here.
Kath Dunn, Executive Director for Student Services with Paddy Hopkirk MBE
Enoch Annobil, Motor Vehice Tutor with Paddy Hopkirk MBE
