This Girl's Ability needs you, or they lose a £4.5k pledge from Sport England!

If you've looked at social media recently or switched on the radio, you will have heard of This Girl's Ability, a new community company making an impact in the sports sector.

This non-profit community company seeks to support girls and young women with disabilities, working to tackle loneliness, assist in the prevention and management of poor mental health, and enhance physical well-being. Disabled people were disproportionately affected by COVID-19, and This Girl's Ability is committed to aiding recovery post-pandemic. The community project will help to tackle inequalities and reach another area of regional deprivation.

Based in the London Borough of Havering and Essex, they plan to offer an exciting range of activities, including creative hobbies, access to sports, volunteering opportunities and workshops.

Founding Director Nikki Fairbairn has been committed to promoting equal access to the sport since joining Writtle University College as a mature student. She quickly progressed from voluntary to paid roles with her local council and continued within the sector after gaining a first-class honours degree in BSc (Hons) Sport & Exercise Science in 2019.

Twenty-two-year-old Georgie Hart is one of the company's directors and community ambassadors. She said: “I believe this is an important project. Growing up as a disabled girl with cerebral palsy was very hard at times. A club in my local community would have helped me make friends, given me more confidence and made such a difference in my life. I wish I’d had something like this. Not every girl likes the same things, so we aim to offer sports, art, drama, trips and a pop culture club with fashion, film, and books.”

This Girl’s Ability have raised over 75% of their £9,000 funding target through Crowdfunder thanks to the generosity of family, friends, the wider community, and kind business owners who have donated rewards to encourage supporters to their crowdfunding page. £4500 of this money is from the Sport England Active Together Fund, but they don't get to keep this pledge if they don’t hit their overall funding target! A small donation could make a huge difference.

The company aim to create a sustainable project by making the most of their current connections and creating new collaborative links with national governing bodies, sports clubs, local businesses, and community groups. If you are a local business seeking to engage in a sponsorship opportunity in their local community and raise your profile, they would love to hear from you. They have creative ideas on what they could offer in return!

This Girl's Ability hopes to change lives in Havering and Essex and your support is vital to help them achieve this. Please spread the word and if you know of any young girls or families who could benefit from this new company, please let them know.

For more information regarding their business sponsor packages, to donate or claim one of their great rewards, visit https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/thisgirlsability