Bishop’s Stortford College Year 5 (Form One) pupil Ben, registered as blind, completes an 8km swimathon through touch and sound raising over £2,000 for Great Ormond Street Hospital.
Year 5 (Form One) Bishop’s Stortford College pupil, Ben Hardy, who is severely visually impaired and registered as blind, has raised over £2,000 for Great Ormond Street Hospital by swimming 8km, 320 lengths, throughout March.
Diagnosed with a rare genetic Nance Horan Syndrome, 10-year-old Ben has been treated at Great Ormond Street Hospital in the Neuro Disability Developmental Vision Clinic since the age of one.
Inspired by Laura Ager, Ben’s swimming teacher and coach at Bishop’s Stortford College, and to say a big thank you to the team and staff at Great Ormond Street Hospital for their support over the years, Ben set himself the challenge of swimming a total of 8km, 320 lengths, with the aim of raising money to help more children with similar disabilities to his own.
Taught by Laura, Ben swims through sensory techniques including touch in the water, being guided by Laura’s voice, and placing trust in each other. Due to his visual impairment, Ben is unable to play and compete in contact sports with his mother, Liz Hardy, commenting, “The College staff, their Special Educational Needs team, and Sports Department have been such brilliant support for Ben. They all work with us creatively and collaboratively, to find different ways for Ben to enjoy every aspect of his learning, including swimming and sport. Ben was also very proud to become one of the Prep School’s first Neurodiversity Ambassadors recently.”
Ben completed his sponsored swim on the morning of Saturday 29 March in the College’s swimming pool and has raised over £2,000 for Great Ormond Street Hospital, doubling his initial £1,000 target.
Rachael Cox, Head of the Prep School at the College, commented, “We’re so enormously proud of Ben for completing this incredible challenge. He’s an inspiration to us all, and we are so delighted to have him as one of our very first Neurodiversity Ambassadors in our Prep School. We look forward to continuing to support Ben and his fundraising efforts in the future.”
Categories: Bishop's Stortford College School News
