Middlesex in the Community (MITC) ensured cricket was a sport available to patients of Great Ormond Street Hospital at this year's ‘Get Active’ day at the Lee Valley Athletics Centre in Edmonton, Middlesex. Get Active is an annual event that MITC supports and this year Daisy Meadowcroft, MITC’s Partnership Manager (Inclusive Cricket) and Robert Tripp, a volunteer coach from North London CC, were its representatives.
The event is a fun-filled day of sports and activities for children that are patients at Great Ormond Street Hospital. The activities, along with cricket, available to the young boys and girls were wall climbing, cycling, athletics, fencing, tennis, ballet, wheelchair basketball, archery, football and inflatable slides just to mention a few. There was also plenty of face painting and ice creams available.
Commenting on the event, Lucy Waller, the Clinical Specialist Physiotherapist who organises the event, said:
"It can be difficult for children to stay active during cancer treatment, especially if they’re in hospital for long periods without as much space and energy to run and play.
"But even a small amount of physical activity can boost their physical and mental recovery, so this event is about giving families the confidence to give it a try. We’ll often hear families say I had no idea my child could do this, and go on to plan things like family badminton tournaments.
"We hope that after this event families will continue to enjoy being active, and most of all have some fun."
Helping everyone ‘Get Active’ was Joe Wicks, a British Fitness Coach, TV presenter and creator of PE with Joe, which kept many children across the UK active through COVID. Everybody was excited that Joe was able to attend Get Active this year, along with his son Marley. He found it incredibly inspiring, and loved being part of the day.
For a more detailed view of how the day went please watch the video.
