The Barratt Foundation’s visit to a Whizz Kidz Clinic

Last month, Sonal Henderson from The Barratt Foundation attended one of our Clinics to learn first-hand about the work that Whizz Kidz does. Sonal joined Therapist, Cherie, and Engineer, John, in Norwich. It was a busy day, with four different appointments!

We asked Sonal a few questions about her experience...

Hi Sonal! Can you tell us more about The Barratt Foundation’s mission and why you support Whizz Kidz?

The Barratt Foundation’s vision is to  help communities throughout the UK to thrive, focusing our support on children and young people and those most disadvantaged. We’ve been working with Whizz-Kidz for a number of years to help enable hundreds of young wheelchair users to be mobile, enabled and included through provision of life-changing wheelchairs, and crucial confidence-building opportunities which we’re really proud!

This is the first time that you have visited a Whizz Kidz Clinic. What were your first impressions?

I loved my visit to the clinic and meeting Cherie and John. I was blown away by the professionalism, kindness and care they both showed to each young person that came into clinic that day. I felt really emotional seeing first hand the difference the Barratt Foundation are able to make to so many children and young people.

What was your favourite part of the day?

My favourite part was meeting the incredible young people, in particularly the most polite young man, Ben. It was amazing to hear the difference his chair was making to him – both at school and at home and how much confidence it gave him. Every young person and their family/carer that came into the clinic were so thankful to Whizz Kidz and that was incredible to be a part of.

Could you tell us something new that you learned?

I learnt that the right wheelchair for the young persons need can make a world of difference. Each young person is different and with the right support, they can grow in confidence, learn new skills and continue to go further.

What did you think of Cherie and John?

Cherie and John are huge assets to Whizz Kidz. Their kindness, ability to gel with each young person and the professionalism they showed was incredible. It was lovely to see the young person interact with them both and how they listened and made sure to talk to both the parent/carer and the young person.

I’m really glad I got to meet Cherie and John, they are wonderful and Whizz Kidz are lucky to have them both working the clinic!

What advice would you give to a family who are thinking of applying for a wheelchair through Whizz Kidz?

Do it – Whizz Kidz are an incredible organisation who put the young person and their needs before all else. The difference the right chair can make for the young person is something Whizz Kidz understand. Their support for families alongside the young person is something you can’t get elsewhere. They are kind, compassionate and more importantly, bold and brave, consistently looking out for the young person.

We also caught up with Cherie, who had this to say:

“As part of the clinical team, we are keen for the corporate partners to visit the regional Clinics. It is a key opportunity for the therapists to showcase what Whizz Kidz do and for visitors to see what their donations allow us to achieve. Recently Sonal visited our Norwich clinic and showed great interest in both the assessments themselves and what Whizz Kidz are trying to achieve and the importance of inclusivity and independent mobility (interesting discussion about accessible playgrounds!).

We assessed for new power chairs and trialled a self-propelling manual wheelchair for a young girl for the first time. We're thankful for Sonal visiting and taking time out, so we can show the importance of what Whizz Kidz do!”

Thank you to The Barratt Foundation for generously donating over £2.1 million pounds to Whizz Kidz, and supporting us to help young wheelchair users go further.