Faithorn Farrell Timms

"Disabled young people should not be marginalised or dependent, but active, confident and independent" Greg Mulholland MP

One of those disabled kids becoming marginalised was Josh…

Twelve-year-old Josh was unable to obtain the wheelchair he needed from his local NHS service, so he had to make do with a push wheelchair. This made it hard for him to gain any independence in his every day life. He needed to be pushed around constantly, and as he got older it became increasingly difficult for his carers to manage at the pace he wanted to move. As he began to outgrow his chair he developed back problems which caused him great distress…

Whizz-Kidz provided Josh with a life-changing new powered wheelchair. He can now join in at school, at home and at play. In his mum's words: "the wheelchair has had an amazing impact on all our lives".

There are 70,000 disabled kids in the UK like Josh waiting for the right wheelchair. In some cases Whizz-Kidz has found kids as old as nine are still being pushed around in a toddler's buggy simply because they do not have timely access to the equipment they need on the NHS.

Whizz-Kidz Provides

• Powered and lightweight manual wheelchairs which the kids are able to self-propel – fundamental to their independence. These wheelchairs become an extension of themselves.
• Wheelchair Skills Training enabling kids to get the most out of the equipment and be road safe.
• Ambassador Clubs and Camp Whizz-Kidz give kids an opportunity to make new friends, learn life skills and discover new talents.
• Work experience placements, bolstering skills and confidence for the young people, and also a determination for future employment, diminishing the link between disability and poverty.

Currently, disabled young people are over twice as likely as their non-disabled peers not to be in education, employment or training. Whizz-Kidz is working to change this.

Watch Shea's Spaceship, a video that shows how Whizz-Kidz can transform the life of a disabled young person.