For more than 30 years, I've seen how something as ordinary as a pair of trainers can affect a young person's life.

I've seen children singled out, bullied and excluded because of what they wear on their feet. I've seen young people without trainers for PE or sport, and others wearing pairs that are worn out, damaged or simply no longer fit.

But what has stayed with me isn't the shoes.

It's what happens to the young person wearing them.

Because children notice differences. And when you are the one who feels different, you can become painfully aware of it.

You start to shrink.

You avoid being noticed. You stop joining in. You find reasons to sit things out. And opportunities that should be part of growing up — sport, confidence, belonging, discovering what you're capable of — can begin to disappear.

No young person should be made to feel less because of what they have on their feet.

That's why Levamus exists.

Not because a pair of trainers can solve every problem a young person might face.

But because they can remove one that should never have been there in the first place.

We can remove that barrier.

There are many reasons a young person might not have decent trainers. We're not here to judge those circumstances.

We're here to make sure the child doesn't have to carry them.

Levamus provides trainers to young people across the UK who need them — so they can take part, fit in and get on with being young.

And that's where you can make a difference.

You may never meet the young person you help. They may never know your name.

But because of you, one young person could have one less reason to feel different, one less reason to hide, and one more reason to step forward.

Levamus means "we lift."

You can be the lift.

Help put a pair on their feet.