CALLING all women drivers - you may be the butt of many a joke, but here's your chance to prove you can drive some mean machines.

Newport-based school transport safety group BUSK - Belt up School Kids - is inviting women of all ages who have a current car licence to take part in its Ladies Driving Challenge.

The event, set to take place at Caerwent Army Training Base on September 1, will be divided into three parts.

The first, a skills test, will see participants weaving around cones and driving through rough terrain. They will also score points for their ability to drive a JCB.

Then there's a pit stop, which will see the women challenged to find deliberate faults on four cars. The main driving challenge will involve the women driving a variety of vehicles including a fire engine, double decker bus, Army tank, a HGV and an emergency breakdown vehicle with a crane.

Pat Harris, founder of BUSK, said: "Ten thousand children are injured every year in the UK because they are not wearing seatbelts. We want to help reduce those figures and the public can help us with their support."

The contestant scoring the most points in the challenge will win a prize - but the top prize will go to the person raising the most money for BUSK.

This prize, sponsored by Ford, will begin with dinner before a whole weekend of driving activity. Activities will include riding a Harley-Davidson and off-road driving.

Proceeds of the challenge will go towards BUSK's School Transport Safety Week, which runs from September 23 to 30.

BUSK is also hoping to provide an HGV at the women's challenge event for men to have a go in return for a donation.

And 12 to 17-year-olds will be able to have an informal driving lesson on site in return for a donation to BUSK thanks to Intuition School of Motoring, who are taking four dual-control cars to the challenge.

The event is open to all women with a current car licence and costs £5 to register. Entrants are asked to raise a minimum of £75.

For more details, contact BUSK on 01633 274944.