Beats Bus hoping for new ticket to ride

Nigel Taylor said they're hoping to purchase a new Beats Bus and be back on the road by May

A community group which uses a bus to teach hip-hop skills to children in Hull says it "will be back" after it was forced to take it off the road.

The vehicle, containing Beats Bus Records' mobile recording studio, failed its MoT and the cost of the repairs mean it will have to be scrapped, the organisation said.

The group launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise at least £10,000 for a replacement which it hopes to purchase by May.

Beats Bus was launched in 2017 during Hull's City of Culture year to help young people across the city improve their social skills, creativity and self-confidence.

The mobile recording studio was launched in 2017 and works with children and young people across Hull

The group said the colourful bus, which features graffiti art, was rotten and rusted and "not worth repair".

Nigel Taylor, one of the founders, said: "The bus has come to a halt, but the actual organisation and the ethos will always continue.

"It's on its last wheels, but we'll get a new bus by May and we’ll be playing music and engaging with people once again."

The leader of Hull City Council, Cllr Mike Ross, posted on social media that the council is looking at ways of helping and would make an announcement soon.

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