With the summer break just a few days old, Sir Lewis Hamilton has been busy since the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The seven-time champion spent some time powersurfing with MotoGP champion Fabio Quartararo, he performed a photoshoot with Maison Valentino, and he headed off to Namibia for some deserved time away.
Perhaps most important of all though is his continued commitment to helping underprivileged children receive the same rights to resources and education as everyone else.
Hamilton’s charity, Mission 44, was set up to encourage more diversity, not just in Formula 1, but in the wider world as he seeks to create a fairer environment for all.
The Hamilton commission, established in 2020, was designed to identify what needs to be done to counter discrimination in sport.
It found cases of homophobic, racist and sexist abuse in sports such as football cricket and F1, while Hamilton himself has been the victim of racial discrimination throughout his career.
He was recently racially abused by three-time world champion Nelson Piquet, emphasising the long road ahead towards changing people’s attitudes.
Nine of the 10 teams on the grid have reportedly signed a charter written up by the charity that sets targets for all employers in F1.
The goal is to encourage more diversity and get more women, black people and members of the LGBTQ+ community involved.
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It has now teamed up with Sky to set up a ‘Preventing Exclusions Fund’,’ as it finds that excluding children from school tends to worsen their behaviour, mental wellbeing and education.
It also notes that children of Caribbean descent are excluded from school at double the rate of their peers.
Mission 44 is set to partner with The Difference, as well as Just For Kids Law, and has pledged £375,000 to each charity to support vulnerable children in schools.
The money will enable The Difference to run more extensive specialist programmes, ensuring a fairer system of education for the future.
Just For Kids Law will put their money towards providing legal aid for parents who are unable to seek advice on next steps when their child is exclude from school.