Bettridge School Meets Irwin Mitchell and British Athletics

As the official legal partner for British Athletics, we invited athletes from the team to join us at Bettridge School’s Sports Day. Located in Cheltenham, the school is dedicated to supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities. Inclusive sports form a large part of the school’s curriculum and are key to helping the children develop their social skills, balance, coordination and confidence.

On the day, pupils were able to take part in a range of inclusive activities and meet inspirational athletes and para-athletes. This included Commonwealth bronze medallist and para discus thrower Harrison Walsh, 1,500-meter runner Piers Copeland, and gold and silver medal-winning Paralympian Mickey Bushell MBE.

Pupils had the chance to hold 2022 Commonwealth Games medals, ask the athletes their burning questions all while getting advice on their technique. The team from British Athletics also provided goodies throughout the day. The day proved to be a fantastic experience for all involved and if you’d like to see some highlights from the day, then please watch the video below.

Speaking about the success of the day, Bettridge School’s headteacher, Jo Bleasdale said: “A day like this is so important for our school because it allows us to have that inclusivity in everything that we're doing. The children love sport, and we have that as part of the curriculum, but to have special guests like Irwin Mitchell and British Athletics, made today have a real buzz about it. It's just been phenomenal, and it's really raised the profile of inclusive sports.”

Mickey Bushell MBE added, “I think it's incredibly important to have days like these because it gets everybody involved. And it shows people that they can do stuff, and there’s a way around doing stuff and the way they tailor the activities to different disabilities is amazing as well.”

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