Matt Hampson has received his OBE from The Princess Royal at an investiture service at Windsor Castle after being listed in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours for services to charity.

A Leicester Tigers prop and England age-group international, Matt suffered a life-changing injury aged just 20 and has been paralysed from the neck down ever since, relying on a mechanical ventilator to breathe.

But rather than lament what he’d lost, Matt decided to focus on what he could still do and established the Matt Hampson Foundation which works to support and rehabilitate other young people seriously injured through sport.

Following extensive fundraising and campaigning, the Foundation opened its Get Busy Living rehabilitation centre in Leicestershire in 2018.

Tommy Cawston, CEO of the Foundation and close friend of Matt’s, said: “Matt has dedicated his life to helping others in a similar situation to him and this recognition is well-deserved.

“What he has achieved since his injury is remarkable and here at the Foundation we are all really proud of him.”

The Get Busy Living centre has a gym, specialist disability personal trainer and experienced physiotherapists to provide Foundation beneficiaries with physical rehabilitation.

Matt and other beneficiaries provide the kind of advice that can only be given by those who have lived through a life-changing injury. This focus on enhancing the mental well-being of individuals and their close family is what makes the centre such a unique place. 

For more information please visit www.matthampsonfoundation.org.