The Booth Group and Envirogeeks have teamed up to support St Helens-based racing driver Tom Cannon, bringing together expertise in land remediation, sustainable materials and environmental consultancy.
17-year-old was diagnosed with autism in 2023 after his parents sought help for the many social challenges and social anxiety Tom was facing at school.
He discovered a passion for racing when he was just eight years old, and competed in the British Indoor Kart Championship. He then took part in the Ginetta Juniors Scholarship programme, reaching the final after competing against 70 drivers. Realising he had clear potential, he took his advanced ARDS test to enable him to compete in senior races.
He signed for Team BRIT this year and will compete in the Snetterton Saloons Series as part of a developmental rookie year. Tom will drive a BMW M240i and will team up with experienced driver Bobby Trundley, who will help support and coach him in his inaugural year with the team. Bobby is also autistic.
Tom’s father teaches the son of Booth Group Managing Director, Kate McCarthy-Booth, and Founder, Matthew Booth. They, along with their son, Josh were so inspired by Tom’s story that they committed to supporting him in this milestone year.
Now, both Booth Group and Envirogeeks branding can be seen on Tom’s race suit and car. Tom will be on the track this weekend for round 1 of the Snetterton Saloons Series at Donington Park.
The Booth Group are specialists in sustainable solutions for soil recovery, aggregate production, land remediation and leisure space development. They help landowners and businesses passionate about making materials work smarter, by providing solutions to maximise their land assets through sustainable operations, recovery, remediation, and development. Envirogeeks provides environmental and technical expertise to support planning, permitting and material management across the waste and minerals industry.
The BMW M240i Tom is driving has been completely ‘recycled’ to become a racing car. Bought from an online auction after sustaining extensive structural damage, Team BRIT engineers stripped it and carried out a range of upgrades and additions. This is just one part of the team’s efforts towards greater sustainability, aligning with The Booth Group and Envirogeeks’ passion for demonstrating how materials can be reused and re-engineered, even in traditionally resource-intensive industries.
Hannah Haeffner, Innovation and Sustainability Director of The Booth Group, said: “As Sustainability Director at Envirogeeks, I’m especially proud that this partnership highlights the importance of bringing sustainable thinking into traditionally resource-intensive industries. Working across quarrying, mining, minerals and waste, we know how important it is to challenge conventional approaches and find smarter ways to reuse, repurpose and recover materials. What Team BRIT has done with the BMW M240i is a brilliant example of that in action, showing how innovation and sustainability can sit alongside performance and ambition. Just as importantly, partnerships like this show that activities such as motorsport can continue to inspire and bring people together, provided we keep finding more sustainable ways for them to evolve. Sustainability should help protect the future of the things people love, not take away from them. We’re proud to support Tom and to back a story that brings together ambition, inclusion and practical sustainability in such a meaningful way.”
Tom commented: “I’m so grateful to everyone at The Booth Group for backing me this season. It’s been an absolute dream come true to be given the chance to take the next step on my motorsport journey with Team BRIT. I honestly can’t believe it’s happening and I’m going to put everything into making this year a huge success.
“I can only do this with the support of sponsors such as The Booth Group. With their help, I hope I’m showing other young people with autism or any other disabilities that nothing is impossible.”
With a long-term ambition to compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Tom is taking his first steps towards the highest level of endurance racing, with The Booth Group and Envirogeeks proud to support him – and set to be trackside cheering him on as his journey begins.
