Surrey Wooden Spoon Regional Chairman, Bryan Hodges praised the efforts of the Gallagher Road to Twickenham cycle team after seeing first-hand what the money raised can do for children.

Hodges oversees the Surrey branch of the rugby charity and is intrinsic in making sure disadvantaged and disabled children in his area are given access to facilities.

The Road to Twickenham saw a 650-strong team of cyclists take part in the 750-mile bike ride from Newcastle to Twickenham, stopping at all 13 Gallagher Premiership grounds on the way to raise money for Wooden Spoon and various Premiership Rugby foundations.

Gallagher’s Road to Twickenham bike ride built upon the Wooden Spoon’s core values of Passion, Integrity, Teamwork and Fun, while aiming to raise as much money as possible in just seven days.

Wooden Spoon is the children’s charity of rugby, funding life-changing projects across the UK & Ireland that support vulnerable children and young people.

Their aim is that every penny that their volunteers raise is spent on life-changing projects in their local communities.

In the last year, despite the difficult conditions, they funded 43 charitable projects supporting 100,000 vulnerable children and young people. However, more vulnerable children need their help, now more than ever.

Hodges said: "This event has been fantastic for Wooden Spoon.

"Disabled children have very limited play areas. So, all the facilities that we provide are equipped with kit and equipment specifically so disabled children can use them.

"There's a lot of wheelchair access and there's a lot of supported structures that can make sure that children who are only semi-mobile in places can actually access the equipment and enjoy them.

"And they laugh a lot, and they smile a lot and that's what Wooden Spoon is about."

Wooden Spoon is the children's charity of rugby, funding life-changing projects across the UK and Ireland to help support young and vulnerable people. 

The cross-country charity cycle saw a core team of former rugby internationals Jack Clifford and Nathan Hines joined by 2016 Paralympic champion and track cyclist Louis Rolfe.

Explaining the work that that charity does, Hodges said: "Wooden Spoon is divided into 37 regions across the UK and each region is decided normally by a county boundary.

"We are responsible for raising money in Surrey by running events and then spending it in Surrey on projects.

"We have a number of cornerstone fundraising events, and we are very similar to most of the regions that Wooden Spoon has.

"What we raise in any one year, we are allowed to spend during the following year.

"So, we never commit to a project unless we already know that we've raised the money for it."

And with thousands of children across the country being impacted by the money events such as the Gallagher Road to Twickenham raise, Hodges has seen the rewards reaped up close.

He said: "So Wooden Spoon funds a lot of facilities in special needs schools. For instance, Brooklands School in Reigate where we have just funded a brand-new play area for them.

"It could be a charity; we've just funded a viewing gallery in a brand-new facility in the Riding for the Disabled centre in Effingham.

"Or it could be a charity that's run to look after unprovided respite facilities for children. For instance, we have just refurbished a bathroom in a respite home at a place called Cherry Tree near Clanden in the middle of Surrey.

"The schools that Wooden Spoon supports, we put a lot of money into sensory rooms and trail. "And we've just finished funding Portsbury School which is in Camberley. We've now just funded a sensory trail which borders the play area."

Wooden Spoon is the children’s charity of rugby. With the help of you, the rugby family, we fund life-changing projects across the UK & Ireland that support vulnerable children and young people. Text WOODENSPOON 10 to 70085 to donate £10 or visit JustGiving: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/gallaghersbikeride and woodenspoon.org.uk to find out more.