Shriya Wagadia, who her parents describe as the “happiest child”, has epilepsy and global development delay (GDD), which affects her learning, mobility and speech, meaning she’s unable to ride a regular bike.

After trialling an adapted trike at Cycles4All – an inclusive cycling centre in Eastleigh – Shriya’s parents saw the enormous benefits of cycling for their little girl and applied to Children Today for support.  

Children Today has pledged £1000 towards an adapted trike, that has adapted safety mechanisms, including foot straps, a lap belt, back rest and padding, but the family needs to raise a further £278 (amount updated 17/08/22) for Shriya to get this much-needed equipment.

Manisha Wagadia, Shriya’s mum explains:

“Shriya is such a sociable little girl. She loves being around friends and family and she’s just desperate to join in with her friends and her younger brother, Ayush.

“Ayush has recently got his own bike and Shriya watches on longingly, desperate to join in. We’d just love for her to be able to get involved and enjoy playing alongside him rather than being on the side-lines. All we want is for her to have a normal childhood and be able to take part in activities that other children her age enjoy.

“Shriya can walk, but she’s not able to run, skip, hop or jump, so playing with her peers can be difficult as she simply can’t keep up with them. When we saw her on the trike, seeing the joy and excitement on her face was amazing.”

Shriya is depserate to join her brother, Ayush (right) on bike rides

Due to her condition, Shriya has poor balance and reduced core strength and endurance. She is also at risk of having a seizure, due to her epilepsy, which predominantly presents as ‘drop-attacks’.

Shriya’s dad, Amit Wagadia, says:

“We’re always worrying about Shriya and feel like we have to be with her all the time, in case she has a ‘drop-attack’. But with this trike, we’ll have peace of mind that she’s safe and can’t hurt herself if she has a seizure.

“It will also be a fantastic way of helping her get regular exercise and help to build up her muscle tone and stamina. Over the last couple of years, with the lockdowns and limited access to her usual support, like swimming lessons, Shriya’s mobility and endurance has declined a lot.

“Throughout the pandemic we made sure we had regular family walks, but she started to have frequent falls and was struggling to get up and down the stairs. This trike will provide a fun way to help her rebuild her strength and endurance.”

When Shriya trialled the adapted trike she was overjoyed

Manisha adds:

“We’re so proud of Shriya, Despite her challenges she’s so independent and constantly pushes herself. She wants to try everything. The physical benefits will be huge, but we also know it will have a massive impact on her mental health too. We know other people affected by disability who have described being able to cycle as transformational and how it’s given them a huge confidence boost.

“Shriya is such a determined little girl and so happy and bubbly, no matter what she faces, so we just want to be able to give her something that will help her thrive and bring fun into her life.”

To make a donation to help Shriya get this much-needed adapted trike click below!

Any funds raised over and above what we need to provide this equipment will go towards helping fund vitally important equipment for other children and young adults with a disability or life-limiting condition.