A football team is hoping to hit top gear after teaming up with a group of motor vehicle accident body & repair students.
The Ipswich Town Foundation Frame Football Squad is made up of children who use walking aids to enable them to participate in playing the beautiful game.
The frames they use were in need of a revamp, so students who are on car-related courses at Suffolk New College repainted them.
The freshly styled frames were handed over to the squad earlier in the season and one of the star performers from the team, the coach (of the Ipswich Town Foundation Frame Football squad) and the director of the Ipswich Town Foundation came down to Portman Road to thank the learners for their efforts.
One of the star players from the teams is Cooper Leatherey, 5, from Ipswich, “Football is my favourite and I support Ipswich. I like the colours of my frame. I’m happy the students painted it blue and white.”
Sarah Leatherey is the mum of Cooper. Sarah said: “It’s given him the same playing level as everyone else in terms of balance and coordination. It’s lovely that the students have done this. The fact they wanted to take part in this project is huge.”
Eoin McNamee is the Ipswich Town Foundation Frame Football squad coach. He said: “The squad became part of the Ipswich Town Foundation two months ago. They wear the same colours as the first team so they feel part of the club. It’s great to have a link with Suffolk New College. The paint job is impeccable and it’s nice to see the pride in the faces of the students when they saw the youngsters using the frames.”
Richard Glover is a motor vehicle and accident repair lecturer at Suffolk New College. Richard said: “It is amazing to be able to do this for the community and the club and I’m very proud of the students. Hopefully, this is the start of many more projects. We are already talking about doing some kind of mural in the future.”
Connor Cobbold, 18, is an ITFC fan and lives in the town. The level three accident repair student said: “We got the frames, stripped all the paint off and repainted them in the ITFC colours. I feel privileged to have been given this opportunity to help these children.”
Suffolk New College continues to have ongoing links with ITFC. The Ipswich Town Foundation currently teaches ESOL students football skills every Wednesday.
And learners on a host of different courses at the College are currently working with former ITFC legend Simon Milton on a project that will support the charity he works for called Futurestars.