College is delighted to share the news that it has supported the Prefects’ chosen charity, Active Impact, to feature on the front of Severn Stars’ new kit.

Severn Stars are a regional franchise playing in the Vitality Netball Superleague and this is the first time a Superleague team has been able to support a charity in this way.

In past years College has enjoyed many links with the Severn Stars franchise, with pupils attending matches, acting as ball girls and boys during the Vitality Superleague Netball games and benefiting from the expert coaching of Sam Cook, our Director of Netball and Severn Stars’ Assistant Head Coach.

When discussing our work with Severn Stars for this year, pupils and staff at College discussed the challenges faced by many charitable organisations across the country and explored unique ways in which they could support them through our relationship with Severn Stars. The donation of the space on Severn Stars’ kit was agreed as a great opportunity to raise awareness and funds for Active Impact, a Gloucestershire-based inclusion charity .

The work between Active Impact, College and Severn Stars is only just beginning and we hope that there will be more positive fundraising activities for pupils and parents to get involved in as the season progresses.

The Severn Stars players unveiled the new kit this week, at a training session at the University of Gloucestershire Arena, in the lead up to the 2021 season.

Nia Jones and Paige Reed have been appointed Active Impact Ambassadors and will be leading fundraising efforts throughout the season, as well as meeting and working with some of the children and young people that Active Impact supports across Gloucestershire.

Nia Jones, Vice-Captain of Severn Stars, said: “It is fantastic to be putting a new Stars kit on and getting ready for the new season, but this kit feels even more amazing as the whole team are going to be raising awareness and funds for such a worthy cause.”

Caroline Eardley of Active Impact said: “Like all small charities, the last year has been difficult for us but we are thrilled to be working alongside Severn Stars, with the support of Cheltenham College, to not only raise awareness of what we offer in Gloucestershire but also to extend our services and increase the number of inclusive opportunities available for disabled people to enjoy, where they can challenge themselves and reach for the stars.”

Nicola Huggett, Head at Cheltenham College’, said: “Each year our staff, pupils, parents and friends come together to support local charities through fundraising and volunteering. We recognised that this year has been particularly challenging for these organisations and began discussing unique ways in which we could support them. Our relationship with Severn Stars provided the perfect opportunity to raise awareness of Active Impact and we are incredibly grateful to everyone for working hard to make this happen. Our work together has already sparked many positive conversations about inclusion, and we hope it generates many more over the rest of the season.”