Gattaca puts best foot forward in fundraising challenge

On World Mental Health Day (Saturday 10 October 2020), the Gattaca Management Board will take on an epic 112-mile journey of walking, running and cycling across the South of England to raise funds for Foothold; a charity which supports engineers and their families with physical, mental health and financial challenges.

As a provider of specialist recruitment services and outsourced staffing solutions to those operating in the engineering and technology markets, Gattaca is keen to support STEM communities around the world, following the challenges caused by the global pandemic. Raising funds for Foothold, a charity with a 130 year-long history of supporting engineers and their families, is a key part of this commitment.

Leading the team is Gattaca Group Director Matthew Wragg:

“This fundraising challenge is just one example of the mission Gattaca is on to help our clients, candidates and communities through these difficult times. The STEM community, like any other, will have people among it who have experienced considerable mental health challenges brought on by the physical, medical, social or economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. By challenging ourselves physically, we hope to help the mental health of those in the STEM community by raising funds for Foothold.”

Foothold’s CEO Jane Petit said:

“We’re delighted that Gattaca has chosen Foothold to benefit from their fundraising. Last year we supported more than 1,200 engineers and their families around the world. Since Covid-19 we’ve seen a 300% increase in calls for our help. With the anticipated increase in mental health problems as a result of the current health crisis, the support of Gattaca has never been more vital to our work.”

The route will see the management board travel the distance between their houses, taking them from Chichester in West Sussex to Ilminster in Somerset. Aside from the physical target of completing the 112 mile distance, the team have set themselves the challenge of raising £1,120 - £10 a mile.

Matthew added:

“In a world that has become more virtual and perhaps more distanced, Gattaca is keen to maintain connections, joining the dots between our client and candidate communities, our wider network and across our international locations. The route we’re taking will literally see us joining the dots between the living and now working locations of the management board.”

If you’d like to find about more about Foothold and the services it provides to engineers and their families, you can visit their website here.

Donations to support the team’s fundraising can be made online: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/Team/GattacaManagementBoard