Whizz-Kidz ambassador awarded Freedom of the City

Governance | Kirsty Weakley | 6 Sep 2011

Whizz-Kidz ambassador, David Proud, has been granted the Freedom of the City of London.

The actor and independent film maker, who played Adam Best in Eastenders, will be sworn in as a Freeman of London on 16 September.

He said: “I am thrilled to accept this great traditional honour. For me, having the Freedom of the City (or the freedom to travel anywhere for that matter) is really meaningful; especially as many disabled people find unintentional barriers prevent easy access to buildings and transport.

“I am keen to use my role to highlight the fantastic work of all the charities I work with supporting the independence of disabled people.”

Dating back to 1237 the honour was originally intended to allow recipients to carry out their trade. It is now a ceremonial title and traditional privileges, such as driving geese over London Bridge, no longer exist.

Proud was born with spina bifida and uses a wheelchair. He became an ambassador of the children's disability charity earlier this year, supporting the Whizz-Kidz Fast Forward campaign which calls on the government to reform young people’s wheelchair services.

Life skills training officer at Whizz-Kidz, Phillipa Gillespie said: “We’re really looking forward to working with him even more in 2012. Congratulations David.”

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