Schools go non-stop for Overgate Hospice with day-long pickleball challenge
Sixty students from four Together Learning Trust schools kept the games going without a break for more than six hours on Tuesday, taking on a non-stop pickleball challenge to raise money for Overgate Hospice.
Playing continuously from 9.15am to 3.45pm at Queens Sports and Fitness Club in Halifax, students from Bolton Brow Primary Academy, The Brooksbank School, Ryburn Valley High School and Honley High School rotated throughout the day to allow for breaks, keeping the action going from start to finish.
The challenge formed part of Together Learning Trust’s Ignite sports strategy, which aims to get more students active and involved in a wider range of sports across its schools.
Ryburn Valley High School student Zac said: “It was a great opportunity to play a really fast-growing racket sport with loads of different people from across the Trust, and also raise money for a great cause with Overgate Hospice.”
Jude, a pupil from Bolton Brow Primary Academy, added: “I like pickleball because it’s very intense and fun to play.”
Ryan Duffy, lead of the Ignite programme and PE teacher, said: “There’s nothing better than watching students throw themselves into something brand new. Plenty of them had never picked up a pickleball paddle before this term, and by the afternoon they were rallying like they’d been playing for years. Sport brings people together, and seeing students from four of our schools cheer each other on all day, all for Overgate, is exactly what it’s about.”
Overgate Hospice provides care and support to local people facing terminal illness, along with their families, and relies on fundraising like this to continue its vital work.
The event has so far raised around £700, and donations are still open at www.gofundme.com/f/nonstop-pickleball-queens-sports-club-tlt.