COOPER PAYS VISIT TO DISABILITY STUDENTS

COOPER PAYS VISIT TO DISABILITY STUDENTS

Captain visits students at local Specialist Inclusive Learning Centre.

Liam Cooper paid a visit to a Specialist Inclusive Learning Centre recently at Brigshaw High School with the Leeds United Foundation.

The club’s official charity have been working with wheelchair users and students with autism and sensory needs at the school, delivering fun and inclusive sport sessions, allowing the learners to participate in practical lessons that will give them enjoyment.

The Whites defender was on hand during the visit to meet some of the students as they took part in a kit designing competition. The pupils had spent the afternoon designing new football strips for Leeds United to be judged by the Scotland international before he had photos and signed autographs for them.

After spending time looking at each design, the 27-year-old chose young student Nicola as his winner citing the colours she'd used and how hard she'd clearly worked on it as his reasons for picking the youngster.

The club captain spoke to LUTV during the appearance and said: “It was great visiting the students today, the positivity from them and the staff was infectious and the relationship they have with the coaches from the Foundation was brilliant.

"The connection the club has with the community and with the fans, especially since I’ve been at the club, has been different class but especially this year it’s been top-notch. The lads have been getting out as much as they can with the hectic schedule, just to give a little back and appreciate that connection we can make with our local community.

"It’s amazing to see and it helps to put a smile on everyone's faces which is the main thing and the boys are enjoying doing it, which is great.”

Yosuke Ideguchi

Lauren Kerr who is a teacher at Brighsaw High School and works with the children everyday, added: "Having Liam here was amazing, it’s such a good opportunity for our students, it really is once in a lifetime for one of our kids, they don’t get to experience something like this often.

“Anthony from the Leeds United Foundation comes down every week to help with our students, usually doing PE sessions but we’ve said for a while that we’d do a Leeds United kit designing competition so they’ve been getting some ideas together and doing a bit of research so they were ready today and they've loved it.”

The sessions delivered by the Leeds United Foundation at the school falls under the ‘Every Player Counts’ project which is a part of the comprehensive disability programme on offer at the charity. As part of the programme they work with schools, local organisations and teams to offer coaching and sport sessions to people of all abilities.

If you would like more information about the disability programme and the sessions delivered by the Leeds United Foundation across Leeds, please contact Anthony.Hall@leedsunited.com.

LIAM COOPER VISITS BRIGSHAW HIGH SCHOOL

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