On Saturday 8th June (and into the early hours of Sunday), Team Shivia is taking part in Nightrider London 2019, peddling our way round London in the middle of the night to raise money for our Poultry Development Services programme in India.

What is Poultry Development Services?

The programme provides the tools and training (the "toolkit") for families living in poverty in rural West Bengal to start a small enterprise from home by raising chickens and selling the produce. It is particularly empowering for women as it enables them to earn their own money, often for the very first time.

Our research shows that when women have the opportunity to earn money their priority is to provide a better future for their children. The women we are working with tell us that they use the money from selling eggs and chickens to help pay for schooling, nutritious food and healthcare for their children.

How can you help?

We hope you will sponsor Team Shivia for the Nightrider cycle challenge and help us reach our collective target of £2,000.

Each donation of £15 could pay for one of our Shivia Poultry Toolkits - everything one women needs to start her own backyard chicken farming enterprise.

Here's our short video about how Shivia is helping families in rural West Bengal to work their way out of poverty.

Team Shivia for Nightrider

Victoria Denison, Mike Williams, Katie Haigh, Ed Davey and Matt Creagh have teamed up for Nightrider London.

We'll be setting off at 10.30pm from the VeloPark at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and plan to complete the 50km route back to the park before the sun comes up!