Bolton at Home compete with the best of British business and raise money for the NSPCC

06-AUG-07

After months of training for the world’s greatest team development challenge Bolton at Home came a respectable 65 out of 125 top UK businesses competing in the 2007 Microsoft Challenge. The team’s commitment to fundraising also saw them raise £1000 for leading children’s charity, the NSPCC.

More than 800 competitors from the leading companies across the UK competed in a series of mental and physical challenges in the Yorkshire countryside. Set in the stunning Peak District, the Microsoft UK Challenge tested the team’s mental and physical abilities to the limit as they embarked on eight major challenges which the organisers kept top secret until the very last minute.

Drawing upon the Intelligent Sport® concept, the six team members were expected to use their brains and brawn to devise high level strategies, crack codes, build structures and solve puzzles while cycling, canoeing and orienteering their way through the magnificent but tough terrain of South Yorkshire.

Team captain and Financial Services Manager, Edward Mellor said: “The event really tested our endurance and stamina and we all felt a real sense of achievement when we finally finished”.

Jim Leyland, a veteran fell runner, added “The best bit was meeting the challenge as a team; it also gave each team member the opportunity to test their own individual skills or new ones”

The whole team agreed that, despite the stages being made even more demanding due to the weather conditions, they’d all love to take part in next year’s event in Stirling, Scotland.

NSPCC project manager Jane Ferguson said: “The challenge was a great way for the competitors to develop their team skills which I’m sure will be taken back to the workplace. It is a great boost for morale and I really hope the team gained a lot of satisfaction from raising money for the NSPCC. We applaud and thank all teams for taking part and for their commitment to fundraising.”

Intelligent Sport® Challenges allow individuals and teams to learn more about their colleagues through the duration of the event than a year in the office. Working in teams of four (with two rolling substitutes), competitors emerged from the challenge jubilant and with the knowledge that they have learned vital skills for business including communication, advanced decision making and strategy.

For a full set of results please visit www.challengerworld.com.