Cerebral Palsy Sport (CP Sport) have launched a Facebook fundraising campaign to celebrate 20 years of CP Sport and the beginning of Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month.
‘Twenty Miles This March’ challenges people to swim, bike, run, skip and anything in between for a target of 20 miles.
Participants can set up a fundraising page, register for a t-shirt and, if they raise more than £200 during the month, they will be awarded with a medal.
“If you are on Facebook, you can simply join our Facebook group and follow the easy steps to start fundraising. Alternatively, for those not on Facebook you can set up a Just Giving page or make a donation to CP Sport,” said Head of Marketing and Communications at CP Sport, Sandy Drummond.
“Funding CP Sport now means we can provide even more opportunities for people with CP and prepare to return to sport safely. During lockdown CP Sport have continued to work hard to keep people with cp active and connected through free virtual cafes, virtual challenges with expert coaches and speakers, and equipment rental services with ongoing support.”
The Covid-19 pandemic has had a disproportionate impact upon fundraising efforts with many having to rely on virtual alternatives or the generosity of individual fundraising efforts. CP Sport has been supported by the London Marathon and Superhero Tri series over the last year and, with Twenty Miles This March, are hosting their first virtual fundraiser.
“Research by the Activity Alliance shows disabled people’s lives have been the hardest hit by Covid-19. Accounting for two-thirds of the deaths from coronavirus, this is a national crisis for public health and one that is being felt most sharply by disabled people. It has led to many disabled people, who count for one in five of the population, feeling more fearful and ignored,” said Drummond.
CP Sport is the leading national disability sports organisation which aims to improve the physical and emotional wellbeing of people with cerebral palsy through sporting activity.
“Research has shown that the majority of disabled people want to be active but don’t know how to get started or where the opportunities are. It’s the barriers that disabled people face that mean they are often less likely to be active. Exercise is great for maintaining a healthy body and mind whether we are disabled or not, but for some people with cp, taking part in regular exercise can make a big difference to strength and movement which can positively impact day to day mobility.” explained Drummond.
“It is important that sports understand the barriers that people may come across in order to play their sport such as accessible facilities, appropriate equipment available or the adaptation of equipment, having to travel to a club may be challenging, how welcoming is a club, having role models is a great way to encourage people to try a sport.”
Drummond has witnessed an improvement in the accessibility for people with disabilities to take part in a variety of sport, saying: “Since the Paralympics in 2000, there has been a higher profile of disabled people doing sport at the highest level and there have been some great role models from the performance pathway.
“There is still a significant amount of work to do to support everyone with cerebral palsy to be active and we look forward to the next 20 years providing the opportunity for everyone to play, participate and enjoy sport.”
You can join the Twenty Miles This March Facebook Group or make a donation through Just Giving using the buttons below.
For more information visit: https://www.cpsport.org/support-us/cpaware-2020/
