Through MPA’s Charitable Foundation, we have recently had the pleasure of supporting a range of talented sportspeople and community initiatives with donations totalling nearly £3,000.

Sending Leo Ward to the Junior World Series

Earlswood cricketer, Leo Ward, has been selected to play for England under 17s in the Junior World Series 2023 cricket tournament in Dubai in mid-September 2023. He and his teammates will be up against Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka, India, UAE, Singapore and others.

Organised by, Action Indoor Cricket England (AICE), the governing body of Indoor Cricket in England & Wales and supported by the ECB, the event will be live streamed from the U Pro Arena.

To the lighten the load on player’s parents, the team has sought sponsorship from local businesses wanting to help support local talent. MPA has agreed to donate £250.00 from our Charitable Foundation and MPA’s branding will feature on Leo’s kit and bag throughout the tournament.

Costs of attending the u17 Indoor Cricket World Cup are more than £3,000 per player to cover travel, accommodation, insurance and coaching support. Leo’s father, Jez Ward, has also set up a crowdfunding page to assist with the costs to ensure that Leo does not miss out on this fantastic opportunity – any further support is welcomed at: Crowdfunding to send Leo to Dubai to represent England in the u17 Indoor Cricket World Cup on JustGiving

Wheels in Motion for London to Paris Ride

Friend of MPA, Hayden Froggatt, recently embarked on a four-day, 500km cycle challenge from London to Paris on behalf of the Cure Leukaemia’s Trials Acceleration Programme (TAP).

Having worked closely with the team at Cure Leukaemia (CL) over the past year or so, Hayden was touched by how many lives are impacted when someone is diagnosed with Leukaemia. Seeing all the fantastic work that the CL team does behind the scenes inspired him to take part in the ride to help raise as many funds as possible. MPA donated £150 towards his fundraising target. If you can support in any way, you get involved via Hayden’s Just Giving page.

Support to Stamp Out Knife Crime

Pressure group, ‘Birmingham Says No to Knife Crime’, organised the ‘Cody Fisher Memorial Football Tournament’ recently in honour of 23-year-old Cody Fisher, who was fatally stabbed in a nightclub on Boxing Day in Digbeth, Birmingham.

Cody, the former footballer, who played for played for several non-league Midlands clubs, most recently Stratford Town, was remembered by players and fans alike when 30 teams aged 11 to 19 took party in the charity event at Star City in Birmingham. MPA is proud to have donated £250 in his memory to support the work to eradicate knife crime.

Helping the Hub with a Grand Day Out

The Hub in Henley in Arden approached us for help in arranging a trip to the seaside for local families and we were happy to lend our support to subsidise the costs of the trip.

Chair of the Hub, Peter Crathorn, is working hard for residents of Henley and the surrounding districts to organise a coach trip to the seaside at Weston-Super-Mare in July. He hopes the day will see parents and children, young people, youth leaders and senior citizens all come together for a grand day out. For more information visit www.thehubathenley.com.

To read about the other ways MPA is supporting local initiatives, visit our news page.