IN THE PRESS

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Press release Doncaster Star 30/07/10
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Press release Yorkshire Post 25/07/10

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"IAN BULLASS June 10 (on Hookway to Hookway making the Yorkshire Post) "its ace i love it , a friend of mine makes the papers who hasnt gone on a killing spree or summat".

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Press release Yorkshire Post 25/07/10
source:  http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/localnews/Charity-rider-gets-back-in.6439097.jp
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Charity rider gets back in the saddle for 300-mile challenge

Published Date: 25 July 2010
A CHILDREN'S playworker has set himself the challenge of riding a bike to his namesake village in Devon, despite not getting in the saddle since he was teenager.
Martin Hookway, 30, will set off on the 300-mile journey to the village of Hookway, near Crediton, at midday on Saturday and said he was nervous about the challenge he had set himself.

Sponsorship money raised by the ride will go to charity Action for Children, which runs the Hedgerow Children's Centre, in Moorends, near Doncaster, where Mr Hookway used to work.

He said: "I have no previous cycling experience, apart from a paper round over 15 years ago. And I have a really bad sense of direction, which means the 300 miles may end up being quite a bit further.

"This will be a great personal achievement, or a disaster. I'm supporting Action for Children because I have worked for the charity and have seen first hand the great work they do.

"They are committed to helping the most vulnerable and neglected children and young people in the UK break through injustice, deprivation and inequality so they can achieve their potential."

During his training, Mr Hookway was knocked off his bike and has had to take specialist medical advice to ensure that he can complete his challenge.

The cyclist has invited people to the Hedgerow Children's Centre to see him off, and take part in a raffle and tombola to raise more cash for the charity.

He said people are also welcome to accompany him on the first leg of his journey will take him 28 miles to Clumber Park, near Worksop. Those interested can sponsor Mr Hookway, who lives in Moorends, by visiting www.justgiving.com/martin-hookway


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Press release on Community News Wire 23/07/10
source:  http://www.communitynewswire.press.net/article.jsp?id=6950647
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 DONCASTER TO DEVON CYCLE RIDE HELPS DISADVANTAGED KIDS
By Emma Foster, Community Newswire

ADVENTURE Cycle Doncaster, 23 Jul 2010 - 16:01

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A Doncaster man who claims he hasn't ridden a bike since his teens and has a terrible sense of direction is preparing to cycle 300 miles to Devon to raise money for disadvantaged children.

Martin Hookway, 30, from Moorends, has decided to raise money for children's charity Action for Children by cycling 300 miles from his local children's centre to the small village of Hookway in Devon.

The Hookway to Hookway challenge will kick off at an open day at Hedgerow Children's Centre, Marshland Road, Moorends, on July 31.
Members of the public are invited to attend the free event, which runs from 11am-4pm. There will be a leaving barbecue, with a raffle and tombola and fun activities for families.

Martin will set off on his marathon cycle ride at midday, with people welcome to join in for some or all of the first leg of his journey, to Clumber Park, 28 miles away.

It is hoped the journey will take four days and Martin hopes to raise as much sponsorship as possible.
Martin, who worked as a playworker for Action for Children at Hedgerow Children's Centre between 2007-2009, said: "I have had no previous cycling experience, apart from a paper round over 15 years ago.
"And I have a really bad sense of direction, which means the 300 miles may end up being quite a bit further! So this will be a great personal achievement - or disaster. Perfect!

"I'm supporting Action for Children because I have worked for the charity and have seen first-hand the great work they do.
"They are committed to helping the most vulnerable and neglected children and young people in the UK break through injustice, deprivation and inequality so that they can achieve their full potential.

"People can help me help them make a difference at www.justgiving.com/Martin-Hookway."

Martin's training programme was disrupted in April after he was knocked off his bike and taken to hospital.
Although he suffered no broken bones, he developed bad neck pains and has been waiting for specialist advice as to whether he will be able to ride his target distances during his fundraising challenge.

Martin said even if he was advised to cycle less each day, he would still complete the challenge.
He added: "It just means the ride will take me longer as I don't want to cancel the event or let anyone down."

Lesley Brewin, centre manager of Hedgerow Children's Centre, said: "We really appreciate Martin taking on this challenge in support of our work.
"In a community that can sometimes feel isolated and forgotten, the number of families who use our centre every week shows how needed and appreciated it is. Support such as Martin's makes a real difference."
Hedgerow Children's Centre supports families with young children in the village of Moorends, particularly helping those who most need support, such as young parents and lone parent families.

Parents and children can drop in to the centre's play sessions, or take advantage of services including training and confidence-building sessions, a library and also day care for parents who want to return to work. For more information, call the centre on 01405 818158.
To sponsor Martin or to keep up to date with his challenge visit http://hookwaytohookway.blogspot.com.

During the journey, the blog will include a tracker showing Martin's live GPS position as well as his speed and distance travelled.
Action for Children is the new name for NCH. It works in partnership to run nearly 420 projects for more than 156,000 of the UK's most vulnerable children, young people and their families.

For further information visit www.actionforchildren.org.uk.
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 News Letter for Action for Children 23/07/10
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  Press release for Thorne Gazette
23/07/10
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Action for Children Internet original Press Release
19/07/10
source:  http://www.actionforchildren.org.uk/news/440/Hookway-to-Hookway-Doncaster-to-Devon-cycle-ride-boosts-work-for-children-
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Hookway to Hookway: Doncaster to Devon cycle ride boosts work for children

Posted: 19 July 2010
Martin Hookway (30) from Moorends, Doncaster has set himself the challenge of raising money for leading children’s charity Action for Children by cycling 300 miles from his local children’s centre to the small village of Hookway in Devon – despite not having cycled since he was a teenager and having a terrible sense of direction.

The Hookway to Hookway challenge will kick off at an open day at Hedgerow Children’s Centre, Marshland Road in Moorends, Doncaster on 31 July 2010.

Members of the public are warmly invited to attend the free event, which runs from 11am-4pm. There will be a leaving barbeque, with a raffle and tombola as well as fun activities for families. Martin will set off on his marathon cycle ride at midday, with people welcome to join in for some or all of the first leg of his journey, to Clumber Park 28 miles away.
                                                                                                                                             
Martin is aiming to raise as much sponsorship money as he can for Action for Children through the cycle ride. If all goes to plan, the journey will take four days.

Martin said: “I have had no previous cycling experience, apart from a paper round over 15 years ago. And I have a really bad sense of direction, which means the 300 miles may end up being quite a bit further! So this will be a great personal achievement … or disaster. Perfect!”

He added: “I’m supporting Action for Children because I have worked for the charity and have seen first-hand the great work they do. They are committed to helping the most vulnerable and neglected children and young people in the UK break through injustice, deprivation and inequality so that they can achieve their full potential. People can help me help them make a difference at www.justgiving.com/Martin-Hookway.”

Martin’s training programme was disrupted in April after he was knocked off his bike and taken to hospital. Although he suffered no broken bones, he developed bad neck pains and has been waiting for specialist advice as to whether he will be able to ride his target distances during his fundraising challenge.

Martin says that if he is advised to cycle less each day “it just means the ride will take me longer as I don’t want to cancel the event or let anyone down”.

Martin, who worked as a Playworker for Action for Children at Hedgerow Children’s Centre between 2007-2009, has previously undertaken many other fundraising challenges for the charity, including a freefall parachute jump in 2008 that he describes as “a big tick on my life’s ‘to do’ list”.

Lesley Brewin, Centre Manager of Hedgerow Children’s Centre, commented: “We really appreciate Martin taking on this challenge in support of our work. In a community that can sometimes feel isolated and forgotten, the number of families who use our centre every week shows how needed and appreciated it is. Support like Martin’s makes a real difference.”

Hedgerow Children’s Centre supports families with young children in the village of Moorends, particularly helping those who most need support, like young parents and lone parent families. Parents and children can drop in to the centre’s play sessions, or take advantage of services including training and confidence-building sessions, a library and also day care for parents who want to return to work. For more information, call the centre on 01405 818158.

To sponsor Martin’s challenge or to find more details on, visit http://hookwaytohookway.blogspot.com/. During the his journey, this blog will include a tracker showing Martin’s live GPS position as well as his speed and distance travelled

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Interview with Action for Children Intrernet
18/11/09
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Martin Hookway, former Action for Children employee and supporter. My action for children is…

Driving to Barcelona in a banger to raise money
for Action for Children!

How did this idea come about?
I have a 30th birthday coming up and along with my brother Adam we were just looking for a way to celebrate. Searching online we found out about a banger rally – to drive from Doncaster Moorends to Barcelona in four days in a car that’s worth less than £200. As the idea developed I thought it would make an excellent fundraising event for Action for Children.


How are the preparations going?
With thanks to Mary Shearn and Julia Gregg at Action for Children the publicity around the event has been excellent. Last week we had a story and photo in the Doncaster star newspaper and I’ve also been on Hallam Fm radio station. So far we’re just trying to build our profile we’ve got around 200 Facebook fans and 50 followers on Twitter. Hopefully we’ll get donations from these people to help our cause.
Fleet Direct of Doncaster have also offered to donate us the car. We almost had one last week but it fell through. I’m hoping to get a car next week as we want to decorate it and take it down to the Thorne Yuletide Christmas Fayre and to local motor shows to further promote the event.
We also have a website that we update regularly to keep all of our followers up to date with our progress.


What are the main challenges for you?
To raise as much money as possible. In addition to the Barcelona Bangers Rally we’re organising an auction for after Christmas. We still need to get more prizes for that – if anyone has things they would like to donate do look at our website for details of how to get in touch.
My daughter, Katie, aged 11 is doing a 24 hour sponsored silence to raise money. As someone who can talk for England that’s going to be a lot of fun.
Then there’s the rally.
We don’t have any technical experience; have never driven a car like this across Europe or taken part in a rally, so we’ll be coming into it completely cold. We won’t be using a sat nav either, just an old AA map which is hopefully going to help us get from the Hedgerow Children’s Centre in Moorends to Calais onto Nice and hopefully across the French Alps, and then across to Barcelona. We’re hoping to bring the car back again, so it will have to last for 3,000 miles!



Do you have a third driver yet?
Our third driver Craig, had to pull out because of university commitments but as he is a good sport he has agreed to donate his services to help us start raising money so we’re offering him as a prize in the auction instead. We are still looking for our 3rd driver so if anyone is interested in joining us please get in touch. As long as you have a driving licence and a good sense of humour you will fit in great. You can apply for the position by contacting in us through twitter (TeamB_O_B) and facebook (Team B.O.B - Barcelona or Bust) or by checking our website.
The Team Barcelona website is at:
You can also donate money at the following JustGiving page:


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Page 3 of the STAR (Doncaster Star that is)
04/11/09
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It's Barcelona or bust!


Published Date: 04 November 2009

THREE young men from Doncaster are making plans for a bargain trip to Barcelona - but it won't be with a budget airline.
The trio plan to get to Spain in a banger worth less than £200, all in a good cause.

Now they are putting out an urgent call for local businesses to donate items for a fundraising auction in aid of Action for Children.

Brothers Martin and Adam Hookway, aged 29 and 26, and their 22-year-old mate Craig Goodfellow, all from Thorne, are taking part in the Barcelona Bangers Car Rally in May 2010 on behalf of the children's charity.

Team BOB - Barcelona Or Bust - will set off from The Hedgerow Children's Centre in Moorends and race to Barcelona in four days. They are hoping to raise at least £15,000 for Action for Children.

Martin said: "We have chosen to raise money for Action for Children as this is a charity close to my heart.

"I have worked for them in the past and seen at first hand the great work they do supporting children and young people in our area. We are just hoping that the car will last all the way to Barcelona!"

They popped along to Fleet Direct on Wheatley Hall Road, which has offered to donate a car and tried out a smart Audi for size - but were disappointed to find it was worth much more than £200 so are still waiting to see what they will be driving next Spring.

"We have some fantastic items for the auction but we desperately need more donations and we would love lots more businesses from the local community to get involved.

"So far we have two tickets to a Sheffield Wednesday home game, a pamper day at Vintage beauty salon, a fashion shoot at Revill Photography, a meal for two at Canal Tavern in Thorne, and free admission and a meal for two at Stainforth Meadow Court dog track.

"We have also been kindly supported by Fleet Direct of Doncaster who have offered us a car to do the rally in."

Action for Children is one of the UK's leading children's charities and proceeds from the auction and rally will go towards its Neglect Appeal.

The charity needs to raise £750,000 to fund vital new services by December and aims to raise a total of £17 million over the next three years to help neglected children across the UK.

Action for Children supports more than 28,000 vulnerable children, young people and their families across Yorkshire & Humberside every year.

For more information about Barcelona or Bust, or to donate a raffle prize or an item for the charity auction, due to take place on Sunday, contact Martin at teambob@hotmail.co.uk or visit their website at www.team-barcelona-or-bust.blogspot.com
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Martin scratching his head made us laugh. Out of all the photo's the photographer had taken, that was the only one he hoped would not go to print... Ha Ha, you go monkey boy... The front page clip was also expertly placed by Mr editor, "Barcelona or bust for duo Crash tragedy"... They know something we don't??? May we also add that although Team BOB are fundraising for the kids, we also like Pensioners...

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Radio Stardom
28/10/09
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At 8:45 on the 28th October the airwaves of Hallam FM were taken over by Martin, for those of you that missed it we have kindly added Martins on air drones bellow. Answers on a post card to how many Errr's you counted... We lost track...

For those of you that have never heard Martin make a public speech before (He CAN'T!!!)

For those of you that have had the miss pleasure of hearing Martins speeches in the past (At least this time no game show hosts or farm animals were harmed in the making of this one, lol)