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We all want to play

Disability History Month continues and to mark International Day of Persons with Disabilities this week, the CEO of Disability Sports Coach explains its latest programme and how the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games are helping to make PE available to everyone in schools.

6th December 2024

by Peter Ackred
CEO, Disability Sports Coach

Being left out of sport from a young age just because you’re disabled sounds like something out of a dystopian novel and yet, sadly, this isn’t fiction but the reality of too many disabled children in the United Kingdom today.

This can look like a local park without specialist play equipment, a school PE teacher who lacks the knowledge to adapt sport for disabled pupils or a sports centre without accessible sessions.

As we celebrate Disability History Month and the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, which took place earlier this week, I would like to consign this woeful state of affairs to history, where it belongs.

Guidance from the UK’s Chief Medical Officers says that disabled children and young people should be doing 20 minutes of daily exercise, as well as doing strength and balance activities three times a week. But how can they achieve this with the odds stacked so heavily against them?

Sport England’s own research reveals that disabled people are twice as likely to be physically inactive as non-disabled people. Hardly surprising given their lack of opportunities to get active.

Locking us all firmly in sport

The side-lining of disabled people from sport and physical activity goes to the heart of why I founded my charity.

It was while I was volunteering for a disability charity myself, that I noticed gaps in the provision for disabled people.
 

Being left out of sport from a young age just because you’re disabled sounds like something out of a dystopian novel and yet, sadly, this isn’t fiction but the reality of too many disabled children in the United Kingdom today.

Put simply, most schools, colleges and community groups were just not providing inclusive sports activities.

I wanted that to change, so I decided to create my own inclusive activity sessions, working with a range of organisations and teaching coaches how to run sports sessions so that no one was left out. 

My idea grew and 11 years ago I founded my own charity, Disability Sports Coach (DSC), running London-wide inclusive community sports clubs.

Without our clubs, members are locked out of sport.

Many cannot access gyms or leisure centres independently and it’s not just the physical barriers to participation – our members need a friendly, calm and accepting environment in which to exercise.

DSC also offers coaching and training services as it’s vital there are opportunities to play inclusive sport in schools, colleges and community groups.

That’s where our expert coaches come in – they go on site and teach the techniques of how to adapt sport for every impairment.

Our training courses help coaches and teachers to improve their knowledge of disability sport and how to deliver it.

Using my experiences as motivators

My work has been driven by my own personal challenges and experiences of being on the sidelines.

I have a severe stammer and dyslexia, which led me to experience bullying at school and in the workplace.

At one stage I was rejected at 39 interviews while looking for a job in sports development.

None of this has stopped me from pursuing my mission of levelling the playing field for disabled people in sport.

Now I’m proud to say that since DSC was founded, we have empowered more than 21,000 disabled people and their families through inclusive sport and physical activity.

We’ve also just introduced an exciting programme that is changing lives through sport – Inclusive Activity Leaders –  a free initiative in partnership with Nike to train disabled and non-disabled people side-by-side to qualify as sports coaches.

DSC has employed disabled programme graduates to coach in its community clubs with great success. Our graduated coaches get a paid job and become great role models for members. It’s a win-win!

The power of Paris

Forming partnerships is an effective way of broadening our reach.

We collaborate with national sports organisations and we link up with specialists when needed, such as delivering our first aid training.

This year it’s been great to see the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games shine a much-needed spotlight on disability sport.

ParalympicsGB is spearheading its #EqualPlay campaign to ensure that disabled children have the same access to PE at school as non-disabled children.

Their research reveals that just one in four disabled children say they take part in school sport.

As a society we need to ask the question ‘are we doing enough to ensure that sport and physical activity is accessible for disabled people?' And if the answer is no, we need to do more.

We must right the wrongs and ensure that disabled people are no longer left on the sidelines of sport.

History will be the judge of our efforts.

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