Fundraisers

Twickenham Dinner

In late 2021, the CPT team put on a fundraising evening at Twickenham rugby stadium for 250 guests. Raising £105,000 through both an auction and donations, the night propelled our total fundraising to well over a quarter-of-a-million pounds for SDR surgeries.

Comprising an interview session with Nicholas Hamilton, the only professional racing-car driver with Cerebral Palsy, led by David Lofthouse, our founder; a guest panel of Jamie Fox and James Haskell, compared by Will Greenwood; both live and silent auctions; and a live reproduction of songs from Les Misérables by the West End cast – the event’s success is testament to the efforts of all those involved.

From the CPT’s perspective, our fundraising success at Twickenham proved that there is significant donor capital available to support economically disadvantaged disabled children, something we hope to tap into further.

David Lofthouse, then in his L6th year, spends the vast majority of his time in a wheelchair and previously has had his friends push him and his wheelchair over the course, decided to walk the Kingsleys on crutches.

The founder around which the Cerebral Palsy Trust was born, the realisation of David’s ambition was only made possible by the Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy surgery he had as a child. Enabling both sustained supported walking and short periods of unsupported walking, the SDR surgery proved life changing for David.

Given the integral nature of the SDR surgery on David’s life, and it’s designation as non-NHS funded for those with quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy, it was chosen that any funds raised would take the form of a donation to an economically disadvantaged child in need of SDR surgery. Out of this idea the Cerebral Palsy Trust was born; little did we know then we would supported 6 children with surgeries by December 2024.

Starting the 27th May on Sky News, a £20K 60K?? donation from members of the public was the bedrock upon which a monumental day was to unfurl. 10 hours and 4.9km later, David was striding up towards a congregated school, some 1000 pupils giving their support to his cause. Having conquered steep slippery hills and Swan lake, David’s ambition had been achieved and surpassed. In a stunning display of the extent to which SDR surgery changed David’s life, he completed the last few meters of his colossal undertaking unsupported, walking freely under his own weight into the crowd past the finish line.

Over the course of the following days the CPT raised in excess of £125,000 to fund SDR surgeries, allowing us to form a strategic partnership with Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children to ensure the feasibility of this commitment.

David’s ambitions were only made possible through Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy surgery, and the Cerebral Palsy Trust strives to provide as many children as possible with the opportunity to achieve their ambitions, ensuring nothing solvable through surgery interferes with this ambition.

Our fundraisers

Twickenham Dinner

David's Walk