Picture News Biggest Assembly with Special Guest, Stef Reid!
‘It’s really nice when other people believe in your dreams. But it’s not required, because I believed in them and I had a plan.’
Paralympian, Stef Reid MBE.
On Wednesday 3rd July, 427, 343 children joined us for our biggest online assembly, ahead of the Paris 2024 Games. We were joined by very special guest, four-time Paralympian, Stef Reid MBE.
Some famous faces to open the assembly!
Hosted by Picture News founder, Katie Harrison, the assembly began with welcome messages from Joe Wicks and David Walliams.
Stef Reid’s inspiring story of resilience
What followed was a captivating session led by Stef. Exploring her journey to become a world-class athlete, Stef shared her incredible story of resilience, perseverance and determination in the face of adversity.
Talking about her boating accident, coming to terms with being a single-leg amputee, adapting to this monumental shift in her life, whilst never giving up on her dreams of being an athlete, had everyone at the edge of their seats.
In the words of one teacher, ‘You could have heard a pin drop when Stef was talking (which is amazing as we had 3, normally rowdy, groups in the same classroom for it!)’.
Stef enhanced the talk with footage of her competing in the Long Jump T44 Final at the Rio 2016 Paralympics. She also donned her Team GB clothing, and showed her Paralympic medal and prosthetic leg.
The assembly ended with a Q&A, where Stef answered some children’s questions (we were inundated with requests!). Stef responded to questions about her mental recovery after the accident, experiencing discrimination and others’ doubts about her athletic ability following her amputation, and offered advice to a school for continuing with their sporting ventures.
Thank you
It was truly an inspiring assembly – thank you, Stef, for sharing your story with us. Thank you to the schools who participated for helping us host our biggest ever assembly!
Watch the assembly
If you’d like to watch the full assembly, request the Zoom recording here.
Click here to watch the assembly with a BSL interpreter.
Learn more about Stef!
Stef Reid’s website can be found here.
