On Sunday, 7TH SEPTEMBER 2008 The Aspire National Training Centre, home to one of the UK's leading spinal injury charities Aspire, hosted an afternoon of wheelchair fun to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Variety Club's Easy Riders® Wheelchair programme.

Wheelchairs from the Easy Riders® Wheelchair Programme benefit players at Aspire like 16 year old sports fan Jack Pegram who has been a fulltime wheelchair user all his life. "The Variety Club has helped us kids at Aspire Powerchair Sports Club millions by giving sports powerchairs. Our team has been National Champions for the last 2 years and 3 of us were selected to play for England in the World Cup* in Japan in 2007. England were the youngest team there, one of us was only 12! My team mates and I would really like to thank everyone at the Variety Club for helping us, they've really made a big difference."

Variety Club's Easy Riders® Wheelchair Committee Chairman Pamela Sinclair said:

"2008 marks the twentieth anniversary of Variety Club supporting disabled children on the road to independence through our 'Easy Riders Wheelchairs for Kids' scheme. The Variety Club provided 186 Wheelchairs to children in 2007 alone and in this celebratory year, we are looking to actively increase the number of applicants we receive and our aim is to ensure children throughout the UK have access to the most appropriate equipment to give them as independent a life as possible.

For twenty years the Variety Club Children's Charity has been supporting disabled children on the road to independence through our 'Easy Riders Wheelchairs for Kids' scheme. We are looking to actively increase the number of applicants we receive. And our aim is to ensure children throughout the UK have access to the most appropriate equipment to give them as independent a life as possible."

Aspire's Tasha Dyson says,

"The work which the Variety Club does through its Easy Riders® Wheelchair Programme is invaluable. Aspire enjoys a great relationship with the Variety Club as we witness first hand the fantastic results of the kids who benefit from receiving the wheelchairs. The Variety Club is encouraging disabled children and their families to apply to the Easy Riders® Wheelchair Programme"