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YMCA: Ensuring disabled people can be active in the community

Stacey and colleagues from Plymouth YMCA’s OnSide club attended the Active Kids for All Inclusive Community Training pilot held in Plymouth on 23 February.

Stacey Ferris, Youth and Inclusion Manager, Plymouth YMCA, said:

“The Active Kids for All training supported staff and volunteers to focus on ability as opposed to impairment and provided an opportunity to share knowledge and ideas. This is an ideal introductory course to encourage people to think about how and what they are delivering.”

The Sainsbury’s Active Kids for All Inclusive Community Training has been designed for individuals who directly support disabled people in the community but are not currently involved in delivering sports based activities.

The English Federation of Disability Sport (EFDS) recognised the impact the training could have on staff and volunteers involved in YMCA OnSide and so approached the YMCA about becoming a national partner for the initiative. YMCA onside supports young people with disabilities by providing a diverse range of activities aimed at challenging perceptions of sport for disabled people.

The pilot workshop was attended by 21 staff and volunteers from Plymouth YMCA OnSide. Although many of the attendees were experienced at delivering activities for disabled people, much of their knowledge lay outside of sport and physical activity. As a result, the training improved these individuals’ skills and confidence to include disabled people in sports based activities and following the workshop 100% of attendees said they had learnt new ways to support inclusive delivery.

Some of the feedback from the participants included:

“This workshop has helped me to understand how I can easily change an activity to make it suitable for everyone”

“Fun, easy, practical and worth every minute”

“I would recommend this workshop to all others”.

Since the pilot workshop, 12 YMCA organisations have contacted EFDS to arrange training for their staff and volunteers; highlighting the importance of the programme across England.

 Lisa McGuigan, National Project Manager for YMCA said:

“Becoming a partner for the programme has enabled us to offer much needed training to our staff and volunteers at YMCAs nationally to ensure our clubs continue to provide opportunities for young people to access fully inclusive sports clubs on their doorsteps.”

The Sainsbury’s Active Kids for All Inclusive Community Training Programme is delivered by EFDS and sports coach UK, supported by £1 million of National Lottery funding from Sport England.

For further information about the initiative, to book a place on a workshop or to find out how you can be a partner of the Inclusive Community Training please contact AK4A@efds.co.uk or 01509 227751.