Cheers for out Costumes

Local young cheerleaders are benefitting from fabulous new uniforms and extra hall hire thanks to a new grant of £1,300 through the Community Foundation.

The Manchester All Star Cheerleaders were set up in Wythenshawe in May 2008 offering free cheerleading classes for 7 to 10 years olds (The Sparklers) at Brookway Sports College. The group has been so successful that it now also supports a group for those aged 4 – 7years old – the Twinklers.

This new grant of £1300 comes through local grant maker The Community Foundation from the Manchester Fund, which was set up in partnership with Manchester City Council in 2007 to provide grants for local people in disadvantaged areas, in particular where new educational needs were being met.

The grant is being used to buy specially branded hoodies for the team giving them a uniform that they can wear even when not performing, giving them a real sense of belonging. It will also be used to fund sessions for 10 – 15 year olds, The Comets, which was piloted successfully earlier this year.

Group leaders Lorrayne Siddall and Hannah Vecchione comment: ”We are very excited about being able to run the Comets group for the older girls as this is an age group that can be difficult to engage in such activity, but showed a real enthusiasm in our pilot scheme earlier this year.

“The Cheerleading sessions are providing the young people with a fun and different form of exercise and making them feel part of a team. This year we also competed in a national competition for the first time really giving the teams something to aim for. We are delighted with this latest grant that allows us to expand in this way.”

Cheerleading sessions are held every Wednesday at the Brookway Sports Facility  at 4.15pm for 4 – 7 year olds, and 5pm for 7 – 10 year olds. The new sessions for 10 – 15year olds will begin in September at 6pm. Contact 07870 139361 for further info.