Video: Marcellus Baz spoke to Notts TV at the start of their fundraising campaign
Boxing legend Frank Bruno will visit Nottingham to show his support for the School of Boxing and their search for a new permanent home.
The school, launched by Switch Up’s founder Marcellus Baz, is hoping to raise £450,000 to buy the Pakistan Centre in St Ann’s with Frank Bruno set to visit on Thursday (March 9).
The school currently resides in the centre’s basement on a six month lease after being forced out of its original home at the Sycamore Millennium Centre, also in St Ann’s, over tenancy issues.
Baz said: “Frank saw me on BBC Sports Personality of the Year and then messaged me; we got in contact and he is really interested in us and the work we do.
“He wanted to come down and show his public support for us and to help us try and raise more money.
“He has recently opened up a foundation to help young people suffering with mental health and that has always been something big on my agenda.
“For me, it’s very important that we can work together to try and bring something that can really help the young people around these issues.”
Baz says there has been a great deal of community support for the fundraising so far.
He said: “We have had a tremendous amount of support from our local community and it is still coming in; on the back of that, we are also in talks with Sport England and Heritage Lottery for support.
“What we are hoping we can do with the community, our patrons and people like that, is to plan to put on some fundraising events.
“The kids are very excited because they know that we are going to be putting on lots of fundraising events; they’ve all got their creative heads on, thinking what they can do and how they can raise money.
“To have people like Frank Bruno and Johnny Nelson coming down to support us is really exciting for us.”
Video: Marcellus Baz’s School of Boxing
Baz was rewarded for his hard work within Nottingham at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Awards 2016 where he was given the Unsung Hero award.
He was also awarded a British Empire Medal for his services to Youth Boxing and the community in Nottingham.
He was rewarded locally too with the Community Champion of the Year award at this year’s Nottinghamshire Sport Awards.
Baz said: “It is not about the accolades but for me they give me confirmation that the work I’m doing is going the right direction, and to know that and get some recognition that I’m doing the right thing re-energises me and makes me want to give more.
“More people that do this kind of stuff should be recognised because it does feel like you’ve got your batteries recharged.”
