Caudwell was the owner of the South African
F1 Powerboat racing team Caudwell Racing which competed in the championship between the
2012 and the
2014 seasons. The team made history by competing with
four-stroke engines compared to the traditional and widely used
two-strokes. Caudwell Racing did not return for the
2015 season, having folded the
previous year without completing the season.
Charity interests In 1999, Caudwell was appointed as the president of the North Staffordshire branch of the
NSPCC, and became the regional representative for the Full Stop campaign. Of the appointment, he says: "I was initially approached by the NSPCC to sponsor a cricket match. As is my way I got stuck in, took the whole thing over and was determined to raise as much money as I could." Caudwell founded the charity Caudwell Children in 2000. Of the charity, he said: "I wanted to make sure that every penny that was raised would be put to the best use and spent on the children that needed it. My family puts about £2 million a year towards Caudwell Children. In addition I put in a lot of my time and I do a lot of networking. [But] the truth is my fortune isn't enough to help all the children that need help." The
National Autistic Society asked Caudwell's charity to remove claims that it had the Society's support from its website. In October 2012, Caudwell was one of three principal private donors for the London's
Bomber Command Memorial Appeal. In February 2013, he became one of the first Britons to sign up for
Bill Gates and
Warren Buffett's
Giving Pledge, which calls on billionaires to commit at least half their wealth to charity during their lifetime. He has contributed to the Prince's Regeneration Trust,
Marie Curie, the
Elton John AIDS Foundation,
Ark (Absolute Return for Kids),
Great Ormond Street Hospital and the
Carers Trust, amongst others. He donates to the
NSPCC, and undertakes regular 1,000-mile charity bike rides to raise funds for many children's charities. On one fundraising bike ride from
Land's End to John o' Groats in 2012, he raised £58,021 for Caudwell Children. Caudwell has been awarded accolades for his philanthropic efforts. On 8 December 2012 at the Noble Gift Gala, he was presented with the Noble Gift
Philanthropreneur Award by Hollywood actress
Eva Longoria for his dedication to charity work. In 2019, the Caudwell Children charity opened the Caudwell International Children’s Centre in
Staffordshire, which provides services for children with autism.
Politics In April 2010, Caudwell donated £2,000 to Conservative MP
Bill Cash's general election fund. In 2019, Caudwell was reported to have donated £500,000 to the
Conservative Party, making him the biggest donor to the party ahead of the
2019 United Kingdom general election. He also gave interviews stating that he and many other wealthy individuals would leave the UK if the
Labour Party gained power and increased taxes. In 2022, in response to the
Westminster lockdown parties controversy, Caudwell expressed concerns with the Conservative party under Boris Johnson's leadership. In 2024, he announced that he would be supporting the Labour Party at the
election that year, citing failures under the leadership of Boris Johnson, saying that “The Labour Party in my estimation, as much as I disagree with some of the policies, are absolutely the very best for Britain going forward". In 2024 he donated more than £75,000 to the
Council on Geostrategy.
Brexit Caudwell is reported to be a proud Brexiteer, alongside a number of other British billionaires. On Brexit, he is reported to have called UK politicians “lily-livered” and the EU “Brussels bully boys”. He is also quoted to have said, “I don't understand how intelligent people, successful people, can’t see the benefits of being out of Europe.” ... “I think MPs are disgusting. Really disgusting. This shilly-shallying, I don’t understand [it]. Why don’t they understand that saying we’re going to have a no deal is the best way to get a good deal? You can already see the change in attitude from the EU. They’re trembling.”
Climate Change In 2023, Caudwell described the weakening of green policies by
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as “madness” and said he would consider switching his support to
Labour. ==Personal life==