Sheringham High School Games2Inspire 2022
Our first Games2Inspire in Norfolk, our first time on the North Norfolk coast, and our first involvement with a mainstream school’s SEN day. And it was brilliant!
A shiny day, the sea sparkling in April sunshine, and immediately on arrival we met Ben, a wheelchair-using Year 7 who we soon discovered had been invited to join the Year 9 SEN day. What a jovial and cheerful young man Ben is, full of laughter and wit. I thought it was already good and Ben made the day better!
I was given a full 45 minutes at assembly to give a talk about my life, how I overcame the various obstacles I have faced, and then an opportunity to introduce Power2Inspire and why we deliver Games2Inspire in schools. There were some grand questions too:
How do I use my iPhone?
What was the greatest challenge I have faced?
My favourite sport?
The 132 Year 9s were split into four groups with other external experts holding workshops while Patrick (my wonderful volunteer) and I led a session of games. We chose three: new age kurling, sitting netball and goalball. What I loved was that the students all found at least one to engage them.
I was delighted to discover at the end of my assembly that four pupils from the adjacent Woodfields Special Needs School were in the audience and had been inspired. The wonderful organiser of the day, Rachael Harding, invited them there and then to return to join in the games. They duly did, returning for the second session of the day and getting stuck into the games.
I do hope to be able to connect with the rest of Woodfields. Apparently, though there had only been four students willing to attend assembly, there were plenty more willing to join the games as word had reached them what fun it was to be part of a Power2Inspire event.
In fact, I later heard that the four pupils that came to the event have written an incredible letter to their headmaster asking if John could come and speak to their school.
You can read it here:
In the afternoon we had little difficulty in persuading Ms Harding and Ms Kate Yarbo, the Sheringham SEN governor who had popped in to see the fun, to have a go at sitting netball. Their competitive instincts were soon revealed, but it was clear they espouse our Number 1 Rule – to have FUN!
I was also accompanied by former Power2Inspire trustee, Professor Francis Davis. He is currently attending Power2Inspire events to evaluate and measure their impact, observe the difference they make and opine on their contribution to the public benefit. We await his report in a couple of months with trepidation and excitement.
The highlight of the day for me was the enthusiasm shown by the Y9s on Ben’s team as they passed him the sitting netball – carefully constructed throws so he could catch the ball in his lap – for him to score! True inclusion.
Thank you, Ms Harding and Sheringham. I would love to return. If there are other schools out there who wish to educate their students with a SEN-inclusion day and have us as a major part, we would love to hear from you.
Inspired? Then Get Involved!
If you are interested in hosting a Games2Inspire in your school / college / company / community group then we would love to hear from you. As you can read in our Latest News we have even found a way to make our Games2Inspire a success in lockdown so don’t hesitate to get in touch and we can help you plan your very own Games2Inspire!!
Click the button here to find out more.
Cambridge University Hockey Club PowerHouseGames 2022
“I know you want photos showing off what the disadvantaged students are doing, John, but I can’t tell the difference!”
said Paul Sanwell, photographer extraordinaire, unwittingly making my day! Because that is exactly what we the PowerHouseGames are all about – everyone just playing and having fun together!
It was a pleasure to link up with the Cambridge University Hockey Club for the first time. A massive thanks to Ed Tyler and Frankie Harley for making it happen. We welcomed for the first time too, St Bede’s Inter-Church School whose enthusiasm, laughs and cheers, hopefully show they will return for more. And it was great to see The Perse School back after a Covid break, with of course, our friends from Castle Special School. It was a different class to last week, so they too are spreading the benefit around.
In addition to the usual games of boccia, new age kurling, goalball, walking football and now an embedded favourite – sitting netball, we tried out floor lacrosse for the first time. Designed by a father of a disabled boy who wanted to play hockey but lacked the motor skills to control the ball with a stick, it uses baskets to trap the ball on the floor. We adapted the rules to eliminate tackling and reduce the damage to the baskets – even so Patrick, our wonderful volunteer, spent most of his time putting the sticks/baskets back together and handing them back to players! The games were competitive and fun as I hope you can see from the smiles in the excellent photos.
To conclude we slipped in a bonus game of sitting netball with all participating: greens and blues versus the rest. The chaos was multiplied when referee Steve (another stalwart volunteer) threw in a second ball. I reckon this match set a world record as we were 30 a-side!
These games bring to an end our Spring season of University PowerHouseGames with four excellent mornings. You can read about each of the others below. Power2Inspire is definitely now back on the road after Covid and we are planning a big day at Wilberforce Road Sports Ground (the home of the university athletics track and hockey pitches) in the summer, working around exams, so if your school would like to join in the fun do get in touch below.
Inspired? Then Get Involved!
Would your university sports team, or school love to be involved in a PowerHouseGames? Could your company support our mission by volunteering at one of our PowerHouseGames? If so, then we would love to hear from you. We are also always looking out for people willing to fundraise for Power2Inspire through their own inspiring means. Or, you could volunteer individually at one of our events, or you could give to the ongoing work of Power2Inspire. There are SO MANY WAYS we can all help to ensure “no on else is left on the bench!” Click the button here to find out more.
With special thanks to Paul Sanwell at OP Photographic for his incredible photography on the day. All photos used with permission
Cambridge University Football Club PowerHouseGames 2022
A quieter PowerHouseGames! Was that because we were slightly down on numbers? We had two great schools – Highfield Special School and King’s College School, Cambridge – not the usual three; and one footballer per team, not the usual two. Or was it because this was the day after the Varsity Matches and some of our participants were just a little sleep deprived?!? Whichever it was, everyone had a great time with fun, smiles and laughter very much in evidence.
We introduced a version of blindfolded football, restricting the teams to guided slalom between cones and penalties as they raced each other. Previous experience shows that too many players and guides get kicked when trying a proper game without plenty of practice first!
The students reported how much they loved the event, and were extremely keen to repeat the experience in years to come. The King’s pupils excelled themselves making the Highfields students relax and have fun.
We came together at the end to play a massive game of sitting netball, which made for much hilarity. Even I got involved, creating the position I will call backstop (behind the net), which saw rather more of the ball than I expected as shots do miss! It meant I was able to demonstrate you can still ‘pass’ the ball without hands; I punch it with my right ‘paw’ and get about 90% accuracy! It truly is a game for all.
See what two of the amazing volunteers from Cambridge University Associated Football Club thought of their first PowerHouseGames!
Inspired? Then Get Involved!
Would your university sports team, or school love to be involved in a PowerHouseGames? Could your company support our mission by volunteering at one of our PowerHouseGames? If so, then we would love to hear from you. We are also always looking out for people willing to fundraise for Power2Inspire through their own inspiring means. Or, you could volunteer individually at one of our events, or you could give to the ongoing work of Power2Inspire. There are SO MANY WAYS we can all help to ensure “no on else is left on the bench!” Click the button here to find out more.
Lucy Cavendish College PowerHouseGames 2022
We were so thrilled to meet the team from Lucy Cavendish College and launch our first collaborative PowerHouseGames together. It was an awesome morning with students from Comberton Village College and Castle School. We are already looking forward to the next one.
Huge thanks to Lucy Cavendish who shared their thoughts and photos from the morning on their blog which we reproduce with permission below:
On the 11th of March 2022, Lucy Cavendish College in collaboration with Power2Inspire, launched its inaugural PowerHouseGames.
The event, that took place at the University Sports Centre, began with a welcome address by PowerHouseGames founder, John Willis. And then, local schoolchildren from special educational needs and state schools rotated through a series of fun games supported by Power2Inspire and Lucy Cavendish staff. To offer additional support, student volunteers from Lucy Cavendish and St Edmunds were also on hand to help.
The games included boccia, new age kurling, goalball, sitting volleyball, and sitting netball. And everyone was invited to join in. At the end of the event, John handed out certificates and medals to the children from Castle School and Comberton Village College.
All the teams in their fabulous colours!
Lucy Cavendish student volunteers shared their thoughts after the event:
“I had the best time today at PowerHouseGames. It was amazing to see everyone come together in support of accessibility in sport. Everyone was encouraged to get involved in their own way, and it was such a supportive environment. I loved meeting my teammates and we had a lot of fun! I feel very lucky to have been a part of it and will be sure to take part again in the future.” (Student Volunteer)
“The experience was really rewarding. I really recommend it, it was great fun.” (Scott Hislop)
“We got a lot out of this experience and so did the kids. Definitely a good break from academic work.” (Mabel Dennison)
“We are so happy to have hosted our PowerHouseGames with Power2Inspire. We were promised a fun and loud day of inclusive sports and it definitely delivered! It was such a joy to see the children and students inspired to get stuck into new challenges with great attitudes and team spirit. The giant 18-a-side sitting netball match was a definite highlight. The feedback from our students has been fantastic and we are looking at further opportunities to integrate accessible sports in the Lucy calendar, plus are already planning for our next PowerHouseGames in Lent ’23! Thank you very much to John and the Power2Inspire team for sharing their vision for building community through inclusive sports. It is a fantastic event and I look forward to seeing it go from strength to strength at Lucy.” (Lucy Cavendish Student Welfare Advisor, Maria Dias)
A huge thank you to everyone involved!
You can hear from two of the Lucy students directly here.
And head over the Lucy Cavendish blog to see this article and more:
Inspired? Then Get Involved!
Would your university sports team, or school love to be involved in a PowerHouseGames? Could your company support our mission by volunteering at one of our PowerHouseGames? If so, then we would love to hear from you. We are also always looking out for people willing to fundraise for Power2Inspire through their own inspiring means. Or, you could volunteer individually at one of our events, or you could give to the ongoing work of Power2Inspire. There are SO MANY WAYS we can all help to ensure “no on else is left on the bench!” Click the button here to find out more.
Team Power2Inspire at the Cambridge Half Marathon 2022
The 2022 Cambridge Half Marathon seemed to come round quickly, but that was mostly due to the delayed running of the 2021 version in October. It was though another early start, as the car park for the charity stalls closes at 7am!
I am thrilled to report that we raised over £2,500. Thanks to:
- our wonderful chair, Jeremy Macklin, who raised £250 and beat his autumn time, and Gemma Thake, another trustee, running for us,
- Scott Annett and his lovely family (who came to support him),
- Kieran John and Daniel Jones from Taylor Vinters who raised a significant sum and have had it matched by their law firm Taylor Vinters,
- Parthiban Vijayarangkaran, a great friend from the Future Business Centre, who was concerned about his lack of training but smashed his autumn time and courtesy of another great Power2Inspire supporter, Alan Barrell, raised over £200, and
- Jess Dykes and Tom Bowen who chose to run for us and raised over £500 together – next time come through us guys and get a reduced-price spot and a glorious Power2Inspire running top!
Thanks too to Bob Barnes for putting up the gazebo; shame it was blown away by the Friday storm. And to Johnny Hebron for supporting us through the day, to Justin and Samantha for buying the snacks so welcomed by the runners, to Dan for wearing the rucksack-with-flag despite the cold and for Steve Shaw for attending to shout for our runners.
Despite the cold, the proximity of the last half marathon and the early start, it was a truly successful event. Thanks to all our fundraisers – I hope it was worth it!
You can watch the official highlights reel of the TTP Cambridge Half Marathon 2022 here.
Inspired? Then Get Involved!
If you would like to support us in our mission to “embed inclusive sport in the sporting, education and community landscapes” then we would love to hear from you. We are always looking out for people willing to fundraise for Power2Inspire through their own inspiring means. Or, you could volunteer at one of our events, or you could give to the ongoing work of Power2Inspire. Click the button here to find out more.