Fitness & Nutrition Awards 2021

6 GHP / Fitness and Nutrition Awards 2021 , Aug21725 PanathlonChallenge is a charitydedicated to giving SENDstudents sporting opportunities they are so oftenotherwise denied. It is proud to have bucked the reported trendof childrenwith disabilities and special needs suffering from reduced access to sport andphysical activity during the pandemic. It hasworkeddoublyhard to ensure that, despiteCovid-19, SENDstudents have the same access as ever to representing their schools in sports competitions, plus honing skills andpassions inanenvironment that helps themsucceedby adapting to their various needs and requirements. Most Compassionate Disability-Friendly Sport NPO - Essex Every year, the Panathlon Challenge gives thousands of young people with special needs and disabilities the opportunity to hone competitive sportsperson skills and develop as athletes. Fundamentally, this organisation is dedicated to offering a variety of different sporting events to its end users that they can fully immerse themselves in, helping them to do so by ensuring each sporting event is made as accessible as possible. It caters to the needs of each individual service user, offering all manner of events such as swimming, football, ten-pin bowling, new-age kurling, powerchair, cricket, and tennis programmes. Furthermore, in each of these sporting programmes, the students in question will be able to represent their school in sporting competitions in order to win prestige, grow confidence, and develop physical acumen in hobbies and pastimes that otherwise would have been closed to them. Panathlon Challenge has transformed the lives of so many of the pupils who take part in its events due to this. Critically, it boots their self-esteem, skills, self-confidence, health, and wellbeing, with a programme of well-designed events that have been developed specifically to be open and easy to engage with even for those with the most challenging needs. When its programme of external events was brought to a temporary halt due to the outbreak of Covid-19, it pivoted to be able to continue offering its exemplary programme in a remote manner; this is all part of its dedication to its pupils and their wellbeing, as it knows that for so many of them, the Panathlon Challenge is a crucial outlet and form of expression. Its in-school virtual programme, therefore, aided 45,845 children to take part across 583 schools. This figure, including the 2,140 trained young leaders who support the younger service users and officiate the competitions, shows how widespread the interest for such a service goes, and just how invaluable it can be to a young person’s development to show them how their needs can be catered to in order to let them pursue their passions. In just one year, Panathlon Challenge was able to implement its ‘front foot’ approach to dealing with Covid, deciding that is SEND pupils couldn’t make it to partake in its services, it would come to them. Therefore, its remote programme could be run in the safety and comfort of the pupils’ own school in all manner of playgrounds and assembly halls, allowing schools to go that extra mile for their SEND pupils. Recently, in this manner, it has seen the extreme success of this programme and been rethinking its own offerings. With the option to have fully remote programmes, and the ability to run its in-person programmes coming back, it has canvassed teachers for their opinions and found that 91% would like to see a blended service of the two, allowing for virtual in-school delivery alongside external competitions. Tailored, bespoke, and empathic, both the virtual and in-person services promise to carry the recognisable Panathlon Challenge understanding and sensitivity towards pupils, working with them to help them achieve their goals and reach their personal milestones. Company: Panathlon Challenge Contact: Tony Waymouth - [email protected] Website: panathlon.com