Father and Son Enjoy the National Junior Games

12-year-old Jack from Tooting, Southwest London has Cerebral Palsy and in June he travelled to Stoke Mandeville Stadium, birthplace of the Paralympic movement for the 2025 National Junior Games, one of WheelPower’s flagship events, along with his dad, Mark.

Jack and his dad are no strangers to the National Junior Games after first attending the event in 2024. A student at a mainstream school, when it comes to PE, Jack is included in the sessions, but they aren’t tailored to his needs to allow for full inclusion in the session. Jack would like nothing more than to participate fully in sessions which is why the games provide a valuable opportunity for Jack to experience sport and physical activity alongside his peers.

While talking to Jack about his favourite aspects of the games, three things stood out. He liked seeing the friends he made last year, really enjoyed Wheelchair Rugby and particularly liked Archery, thanks to the specialist equipment they had which really made the sport more accessible to Jack. It is important to add that Jack even gave a special shout out to the cooked breakfast… he loved those!

For Jack and his dad, the National junior Games gave them a great opportunity to spend some quality, father, son time together away from the day-to-day grind of everyday life, a benefit of the games that wasn’t lost on Mark.

Mark goes on to say:

“The National Junior Games have really opened Jack up to so many different sports. There are loads of opportunities and everything is so positive – everything is you can do it! The games are well run, the staff can’t do enough for you, it’s really cost effective and great value for money. You can’t find these opportunities elsewhere.”