This is Reshad, a determined, ambitious and enthusiastic individual, who is working very hard towards achieving his dream of representing his country at a Paralympics. He is 26, has Cerebral Palsy and is a wheelchair user.

He has been playing Boccia for about 10 years, it is a Paralympic sport and Reshad’s ambition is to become a member of the GB Paralympic team. He currently attends a local Boccia club and plays the sport at national and international level.

Boccia is perhaps the earliest game ever played by mankind, with roots in ancient Greece and Egypt.

Boccia made its Paralympic debut in 1984, when the Games were held in New York, USA. During those Games, a total of 19 athletes (10 male and nine female) represented five different countries (Canada, Denmark, Great Britain, Portugal and the USA).

Today the sport is practiced in more than 50 countries worldwide. These countries are all registered as members of the Boccia International Sports Federation (BISFed), which is the official governing body of the sport.

Reshad has won many medals at various domestic Championships and is playing in the Boccia England squad following selection through the England Talent Programme.

He has also played in a number of overseas international matches representing England, which includes international competition in Poland and the Czech Republic. He has also been selected as Boccia England Player of the Year and currently ranks as third in the England players rankings.

To allow him to continue to progress in his sport Reshad has an intensive training programme and he is finding it impossible to cover the costs associated with his training, participation and equipment as his budget is very restricted (the sports governing body provides no financial support to the Boccia England athletes).

These costs include: subscriptions to his local Boccia Club, the transport and accommodation costs of attending national and international competitions between 5 and 7 times a year, as well as twice weekly local training sessions, weekly strength and conditioning sessions at the University of Hertfordshire, 8 England training camps per year in the Midlands and 10 regional academy training days per year along with equipment costs and the aforementioned travel and accommodation’s costs for Reshad and his accompanying carer(s) team. We have calculated these annual costs as being in the region of £18000 but recognising that this is a very large sum we are asking for just some of this figure; £3000.

Obviously Reshad will be very grateful for all contributions no matter what size. We truly appreciate the kindness of every contributor, recognising the thoughtfulness of every one of them from the smallest donation to the larger contribution, from individuals and organisations, all are received with humble appreciation of the charitable intentions behind them.

For contributors who are able and generous enough to give over £1000 we will define these doners as Gold Sponsors and for those giving between £500 and £1000, define as Silver Sponsors and we will try and give some benefit back to recognise their generosity, more details below.

Gold Sponsor:- By displaying the sponsoring person/organisation’s name on Reshad’s equipment and/or sports clothing and/or on his chair and that of his support team’s uniform.

Gold/Silver Sponsor- From time to time Reshad has Press Releases released to the media and has been successful in having news items published in various media platforms including hard copy magazines and newspapers. If desired, all Gold and Silver Sponsors could have news of their generosity included in these press releases.

The Boccia England website; www.bocciaengland.co.uk provides additional information about the sport and includes information about forthcoming events and about Reshad.

I hope that you may have some discretionary funding available which might be considered for contributing towards the financial support Reshad needs to maintain his progress.

Reshad would really appreciate your support towards these costs, his sport is very important to him both professionally and socially, the Boccia family being a major part of his life.

Reshad is determined to improve his life and he believes Boccia will help him develop a career, achieve his ambitions and be a positive member of society contributing to the economy and country. All contributions will go directly to Reshad for the sole use of supporting his Boccia ambitions