Wheelchair sports session at Nailsea School

Backwell-based Motivation an international charity which makes wheelchairs arranged a sports clash with a different at Nailsea School this week.

On Monday South West Scorpians visited the Mizzymead Road comprehensive to run wheelchair basketball sessions for students.  

Scorpians assistant coach Ally Webb worked with a number of different aged students throughout the day, teaching them the basics of the sport.   

The youngsters  were then allocated wheelchairs to practice in before competing in short games.  

Motivation is supporting future Paralympians who hope to try out for wheelchair sports.

PE teacher Dominic Graffagnino said "The day has really helped Nailsea students understand and experience the difficulties that others go through on a day to day basis, as well as in a sporting context.  

"Even in the face of adversity sport is still a vehicle of fun and social activity."

Year 10 student Abigail Bush said: "It was really interesting and a good change to normal PE lessons."

South West Scorpions has three junior teams  and hasrecently added a women's team. 

Athletes have a wide range of abilities and impairments including spina bifida, cerebral palsy, amputations and congenital impairments and several have no disability at all.

Motivation is an international development charity supporting people with mobility disabilities.   

Their high-quality, low-cost wheelchairs are designed specifically for use in developing countries. 

Teamed with  innovative training programmes, their wheelchairs transform lives, giving disabled people independence, confidence and hope for the future.

Nailsea School, which has Technology and Media Arts College status opened in 1959 as a grammar school with 90 pupils.  

In 2010 the school moved into a new building on the same campus which includes a state-of-the-art all weather pitch with floodlighting.

Currently the school has 1,042 pupils.

The school converted to an Academy in September 2012.