‘Unsung Hero’ Stephanie Atkinson supporting children with Cerebral Palsy through sport

We are delighted to share that Stephanie Atkinson from our Hull 0-19 team was recently recognised as the BBC Sports Personality "Unsung Hero" for East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire and last month she attended the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Awards ceremony in London.

Working for our Trust, Stephanie is a Public Health Nurse within the Hull 0-19 service. But in her personal life she is a volunteer coach at Little Victories Cerebral Palsy and Frame Football Club (LVFC) based in Barton-Upon-Humber. The club is volunteer-led and provides sporting opportunities for children diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy within the Lincolnshire, Hull and East Yorkshire area. It was for this outstanding work that she won the ‘Unsung Hero’ award.

She was nominated for the award by Garth de Roux, from Active Humber who said: "Steph's journey as a volunteer highlights the power of compassion and the immense impact that one person can make".

Her personal journey with LVFC began as a mum who took her twin boys, who are both diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy, to the launch of the club. Stephanie said, “I was very quicky inspired to become involved when the club reached out to parents and carers to recruit new volunteers”.

Seeing how her own children thrived from attending the club she wanted to put even more into it and is now the Club’s Coach and Welfare Officer.

Each week the children attend the club to learn about the foundations of football through play and fun activities. This allows them to experience the positive impact and opportunity that sport can provide. Stephanie said this work is vital in, “creating happy smiles and allowing the children to individually shine despite of disability”.

The manager and Hull 0-19 team are immensely proud of the work Stephanie is providing to the local community and the award she has received is very well deserved.