Why this matters
We know that movement plays a vital role in supporting physical and mental wellbeing. Yet Disabled people are still twice as likely to be inactive compared to non-disabled people. This isn’t about motivation, it’s about barriers.
Locally in Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin there are approximately 58,970 carers supporting 41,265 individuals that identify as Disabled. (Census 2021; Skills for Care 2024)
The GYA Local Project is tackling this inequality head-on by embedding physical activity into everyday life, services, and decision-making across the region. It’s about shifting perspectives so that movement is no longer seen as an optional extra, but as a fundamental part of support, care, and wellbeing.
A joined-up approach
What makes this project different is its collaborative, system-wide approach.
By bringing together people with lived experience, local councils, health and social care professionals, and physical activity providers, the project is co-designing solutions that are practical, inclusive, and sustainable.
Rather than creating standalone initiatives, the focus is on long-term change, building confidence, knowledge, and opportunities within existing systems.
Our three key focus areas
- Health and Social Care workforce We are supporting both paid and unpaid carers to understand the importance of physical activity and feel confident encouraging the people they support to move more. This is about making activity a natural part of care, not an added extra.
- Moving Social Work Through targeted training and resources, we are helping current and future social workers embed physical activity into everyday practice. This work contributes to reducing health inequalities while promoting independence, wellbeing, and social justice.
- Co-production At the heart of the project is co-production, working directly with Disabled people and those with lived experience to shape activities and environments. This ensures that what’s developed is not only accessible, but meaningful and relevant. We did this by building confidence and skills within the local physical activity sector to enable them use co-production principles when designing, delivering and evaluating their offer for Disabled people
Progress so far
The impact is already being felt across the county:
- 246 social work professionals have been trained, increasing confidence in supporting Disabled people to be physically active (123 from Shropshire Council and 123 from Telford & Wrekin Council)
- Strong leadership buy-in is helping embed this learning into everyday social work practice
- 32 members of the social care workforce have attended in-person training, with 30 more engaging in the online webinar version since January
- Co-production training has reached 16 physical activity providers, with a further 24 registering for an online webinar version.
Perhaps most encouraging is the level of demand. Expressions of interest have consistently exceeded attendance, highlighting a growing recognition that physical activity should be part of everyday support.
This signals a wider cultural shift where movement is increasingly viewed as essential, not optional.
“It’s been a privilege to work with Disability Rights UK, our local partners, and people with lived experience to explore how we can shift the narrative around movement and physical activity and embed it into everyday practice and daily life. Being part of this project has been incredibly inspiring. We’ve explored what is possible and continue to look at ways we can continue taking meaningful steps towards positive change. This is not something that can be achieved by any one organisation or individual alone. It requires all of us to work together, support one another, and to look at how we can build a system where movement and physical activity can be embedded into the way we live, work, and deliver services.”
Michelle Pullen, Communities, Health and Social Care Programme Manager at Energize STW
“It was fantastic to see such interest and enthusiasm from carers, support workers, PAs and others who attended the social care training. Participants really engaged with the importance of supporting Disabled people to move more in everyday life, and it was encouraging to see their commitment to making physical activity a natural part of care and support.”
Elliot Watson, Project Coordinator on Get Yourself Active at Disability Rights UK and Social Care Workforce Training Lead
Looking ahead
On Monday 22nd June, we will be co-hosting a Get Yourself Active Local event to celebrate the progress made so far and share the successes of the project.
The event will explore how partnership working is helping to create positive change across adult social care and community physical activity provision in a whole system, transformational way. It will also provide an opportunity to reflect on learning, share good practice, and look at how we can continue to support more Disabled people to move more in ways that work for them.
We will hear from a range of speakers, including Professor Brett Smith, Professor of Disability and Physical Activity at Durham University, alongside speakers from Disability Rights UK and local partners.
To find out more and book your place, click here
