We want to help organisations reduce the negative impacts of Covid-19 and address any widening inequalities in participation rates in sport and physical activity.
Created with
Sport England
“Imagine a nation of more equal, inclusive and connected communities. A country where people live happier, healthier and more fulfilled lives.”
This is the vision Sport England has in launching our new strategy, Uniting the Movement, in 2021. We know that being active is a key way that we can achieve our mission. But we know all too well that many communities, including Disabled people, those with long-term health conditions and many more, face challenges in and exclusion from participating in physical activity, movement and sport in ways they would like to.
It is crucial for us at Sport England to work in the most impactful way we can. To ensure better access to and inclusion for more of the population, including Disabled people, Sport England is focused on working with grassroots organisations to impact the everyday lives of Disabled people in meaningful ways.
A new year – the same community focus
Our work at the community level and grassroots are important to enable us to reach the ambitions of Uniting the Movement. There’s a powerful network of community-based clubs, charities and organisations delivering for and in their local areas. We know that they can deliver more for their communities with more support, resources and trust.
That’s why Sport England has invested heavily in community-based delivery partners and influential partners across the disability sector to ensure we tackle these inequalities effectively.
We have invested specifically via our Together Fund, working with Disability Rights UK (DRUK) and the Get Yourself, Active team to support 111 local community organisations. This funding, so far, has directly and indirectly supported over 2,531 people through: fitness and yoga, dance and performance-based activities, peer mentoring and buddying support, health and wellbeing education, and sport.
These activities have led to improvements in physical and mental health, supported life skills development and built the capability to be active in post-pandemic recovery at home using online tools.
Together with Disability Rights UK
Through our partnership with DR UK, we have been able to begin tackling the inequalities faced by Disabled people in accessing physical activity and exercise. DR UK has developed their exciting and innovative programme Get Yourself Active, which has the following aims:
- Build capacity amongst Disabled People User Led Organisations (DPULOs) to provide and support physical activity locally
- Upskilling the social work and social care workforce around physical activity and its benefits to better support Disabled people to be active
- Working with the sports sector to embed co-production in practice, ensuring that the sector are working in partnership with Disabled people in the design and delivery of physical activity
- Providing information to Disabled people on ways to get active at home and in the community
- Developing policy that has an impact at a national level
We are passionate about tackling the inequalities faced by Disabled people in accessing the benefits of physical activity.
We are excited about the future potential of our strong partnerships in places that face the biggest inequalities and with organisations that have the strong community-based understanding to help us deliver on this bold ambition.
More stories
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Misgav storyMisgav story
In this story, Misgav explain how they provide culturally appropriate activity for Disabled women from minoritised communities in Hackney.
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Khalsa Football StoryKhalsa Football Story
In this blog, Anna Denham talks about Khalsa Football academy, which has served the local community since 1988 and supports local children and adults with additional needs.
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Green spaces storyGreen spaces story
In this story Fay Holland from Groundwork UK and Anna Denham, discuss the importance of green spaces such as parks for everyone.
Next Steps
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