Pub raises £400 for Banbury’s Radio Horton by hosting charity race nights

Radio Horton volunteers thank The Butchers Arm Pub for their donation (pictured: George O’Connor, Sam Smette, Kate Francis-Smith, Simon Francis-Smith, Olga Wilson. Photo from Radio Horton)

“We wanted to give something back." – pub proprietor

A pub has raised £400 for Banbury’s Radio Horton by hosting charity race nights over the last two years.

The Butchers Arms, in the village of Balscote, began hosting race nights following the re-opening of pubs after the pandemic and raised funds for local area charities such as Radio Horton and Katharine House Hospice.

Proprietor Kate Francis-Smith said: “We wanted to get the community together to support as many local charities as we can, because they rely on the support of the donations from the community to survive.

“Over the course of the last 24 months our local charities have not been able to raise funds in the usual way and we wanted to give something back."

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The pub organised the event with the help of Race Night Services, a company which provides the resources required to participate in the race event. A race night is a fun packed lottery where everybody has an equal chance to win. The players simply select the number of the horse they want to win. After the desk closes, the film is loaded, and the game begins, with proceeds split between the winners and the charity.

Radio Horton Chair Sam Smette said: “It was a wonderful surprise to receive the donation from The Butchers Arms and completely unexpected. We would like to express our gratitude to Kate, Simon and the local punters for their generosity and their support, we really cannot thank you enough for the difference this will make.”

For more information on Radio Horton see its website here: https://radiohorton.co.uk/