Month: March 2024

27/03/2024

Alex Medley on the International Stage

Alex Medley from Perth Eagles Boccia Club competed in his first individual International event from 22nd to 24th March 2024 in Belfast. Alex, who trains with the Tayside regional and Scottish National Development squads, played in the BC2 classification, taking on players from Northern Ireland, England, Wales and Ireland at the Disability Sport NI International Challenger.

On day one, Alex progressed through the group stages to face current BC2 world champion, Claire Taggert from Northern Ireland. Alex put in a great performance but it wasn’t quite enough to defeat the experienced world champion, losing 7-1 to Claire.

It also wasn’t to be in the bronze medal match for Alex but he does leave with plenty of positives, as he explains in the interview below. The future is looking very bright for Alex.

What is the DSNI Challenger? Disability Sport Northern Ireland Challenger is designed to offer competition opportunities to players within the UK Performance Pathway.

When and where: 22nd-24th March 2024. Antrim Forum Leisure Centre, Northern Ireland

Scottish player competing: Alex Medley – BC2

DSNI Challenger 2024: Interview with Alex Medley

What was your reaction when you were asked to compete? – Very excited, speechless and honoured.

What were you most worried about? – My power wheelchair arriving in one piece.

Best Moment? – Playing Claire Taggart (BC2 World Champion) in the semi-finals and spending time chatting with other players.

Even Better Moment?! – Getting an end off Claire Taggart!

Position achieved? – 4th in BC2 individual category.

What did you learn about yourself over the weekend? – Everyone needs a team behind them; I can hold my own at this level.

Best advice given? – Before travelling, speaking with some of the Scottish Boccia Squad about logistics. Take your time and play your own game no matter who you are playing. Let the ball do the work.

How did you feel? – I was nervous but as soon as I started playing, I got into the zone and really enjoyed it. I was proud of how I played, but every day is a learning day.

Any other learning points? Reset after a missed shot. I like the challenge of playing more experienced players. Importance of first ball.

What made it easier? – How welcoming the whole Boccia Community is; having a great Scottish contingent around me; having my family and friends supporting me (thanks for being there Dad!) Using skills learned from training with the Scottish Development Squad as well as learning from the Scottish National Squad.

Key learnings to work on? – Improve playing long as well as short; consistency, accuracy, strength.

What is next for you? – Continue working on my game both physically and mentally, so I can execute the strategies and shots that are in my head. Play more competitions where I can. Continue to enjoy playing boccia.

Many thanks for the support of Scottish Disability Sport and to the Organisers and Officials for making the event happen.

Photo Credit: DSNI

26/03/2024

Successful Day at East of Scotland Parasport Festival

By William Moncrieff, Communications Apprentice

The East of Scotland Parasport Festival took place on Tuesday 19th March. It was held at Winchburgh Academy, West Lothian. The festival was organised by Helen Kallow, East of Scotland Regional Development Manager in partnership with many local and national organisations. The day had lots of fantastic opportunities for fun and engagement, with around 50 participants attending. Some of these opportunities were boccia, wheelchair basketball, badminton, swimming, and kayaking.

Helen viewed the day as a huge success. “It was fantastic to see all the smiling faces and hear all the positive comments from the parents and teachers about the sports the kids had enjoyed. It was great teamwork”.

Helen continued to say, “I think it’s so important. All the comments have been that the kids have tried things that they never would have tried before. Some of the parents thought that the kids might have been reluctant but just to see other similar people take part, coaches, and helpers as well, it’s been such a positive experience for them”.

“I just think of watching the smile and the face of one of the girls in the canoe, who never thought that she could be in a canoe and what a great time she had”, said Helen.

Each Parasport Festival relies on multiple organisations, coaches, and volunteers to help with the planning and delivery of the day. One individual who played a crucial role was Demi Mitchell, Active Schools Coordinator Lead for Additional Support Needs and Care Experience within West Lothian. “I am at the Parasport Festival from the local authority as I’ve been working in partnership with Scottish Disability Sport, and we are proud to host the event at Winchburgh and West Lothian today. So, I am here helping to organise, support the event, ensuring that everybody has the most enjoyable time.”

Demi further explained the crucial role that the Parasport Festival play: “We know those that attend a mainstream school or mainstream setting can be excluded and left out of sport, which is something we really don’t want. So, I think this is a huge opportunity to show thousands of people, staff, volunteers, and young people that they can take part in sport and by also providing access, demonstrating to those young people that everything is possible. Some of these young people don’t know what’s out there”.

This view is also shared by Fee, a parent and guardian for two children at the festival. Fee talked about the Parasport Festivals providing opportunities that are not always available for young individuals with a disability: “they absolutely loved the first one [Parasport Festival]. It gave them the opportunity to try things that they’d not tried before and things that are not available to them where we live.”

One of the coaches that delivered sessions on the day was, Pamela Robson, National Disability Pathways Officer for Scottish Athletics. Pamala talked about the role that the Parasport Festival plays in providing opportunities from an early age, and the value that she puts on this.

“I feel like the sooner we can get kids into sport the better breaking down barriers before they are there. If we can get children as young as possible to try different sports and realise that they can do it, that there is a way for everyone to participate, then it can only be a positive.” Said Pamela.

She further showcased some of the partner work that is involved in the Parasport Festivals. “In this area we have coaches from three different clubs coming to deliver today. So, we’ve got Corstorphine AC who run a frame running session.

“We’ve got Team East Lothian, who do athletics and frame running and we have a club from Fife who support the frame running as well. But there’s also a few clubs in the local area that offer athletics to people with a disability and have started to develop the bespoke frame running sessions as well. So, it’s amazing to see them here today developing opportunities for people in the area but also for them to see just what the demand is.”

If you would like to find out more information about Scottish Disability Sport’s work or how to find out what is available in your local area please go to contact SDS on 0131 317 1130 or by email at: admin@scottishdisabilitysport.com

14/03/2024

2024: February Review

Selection of Top Moments from the Month

By Emma Logan, Communications Manager

There was plenty of activity happening throughout the shortest month of the year. Here is a quick recap of some of February’s highlights.

February saw the start of the Parasport Festivals. The season kicked off in Highland followed by Fife, Orkney and Dumfries & Galloway. Children and young people got to try out and participate in a whole variety of sports. At the Highland Parasport Festival, boccia proved to be popular as one participant was inspired to attend the regional championships that took place at the end of the month.

Emma Roddick, Minister of Equalities, Migration and Refugees, didn’t shy away from taking part in some of the sports on offer. She said: “It’s been great to see the kids getting involved. We know that sport is so important for physical, mental health, addressing social isolation and loneliness, something that we know is more difficult for people in rural areas and particularly young folk and disabled people.

“So young disabled people getting opportunities here in the Highlands to get together, have some fun and experience sport is just fantastic to see”, said Emma Roddick.

Fife held their first ever Parasport Festival and it was a resounding success. 48 children/young people attended, most of them having never previously engaged with any Fife’s sessions or events. Maree Todd, the Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport also joined in the afternoon to see first-hand, the impact Parasport Festivals can have. “I really believe in the power of sport,” she said.

“This is a wonderful occasion. It’s a real celebration. There’s lots and lots of different clubs here who will carry on that relationship and that inclusion. It’s really powerful work that’s happening in here and everyone’s having a great time.”

(Maree Todd MSP’s full interview is available here.)

Dumfries & Galloway held their second ever Parasport Festival and attracted nearly double the participants from its first year.

Regional Development Manager for Dumfries & Galloway, Dianne Campbell, was delighted with the event, saying: “So many positive comments from teachers, parents and children attending. We are already looking forward to next year’s event!”

As well as featuring at all the Parasport festivals, boccia has seen significant developments taking place throughout February. Forth Valley hosted a Senior Boccia Championship, which welcomed nearly 40 participants from regions across Scotland. The championships were a great success and thanks to Nicola Moriarty and Forth Valley Disability Sport for their support in organising such a fun event.

Grampian saw the launch of fortnightly boccia session being held in Aberdeen. The sessions welcome people of all ages and it is the first open boccia session to be available in the area since pre-covid. Initially run by Grampian Disability Sport, the sessions will run in partnership with the Community Sport Team at SportAberdeen.

Highland welcomed a good mix of young leaders, active school coordinators and other community members to their Boccia Leaders Course, with the aim of taking their learnings into schools, care homes and other receptive environments.

Scottish boccia held their first camp of the year, alongside Northern Ireland at Inverclyde sports centre in Largs. The camp struck a good balance between training and fun, which boccia coach, Peter McGuire, reports on in his review.

Meanwhile, in Dumfries and Galloway – cricket is thriving in the Stranraer area with two champion clubs and three weekly sessions in Stranraer, Newton Stewart and Castle Douglas.

Good news for Ayrshire Sportsability as they received funding from Trefoil Trust. The funding will support a club/coach conference that will focus on implementing inclusive practice in the clubs and sessions run throughout Ayrshire. It will also allow for coaches to receive the relevant training and skills to adapt their sessions.

The Young Person’s Sport Panel had their first residential of the year, hosted also at Inverclyde sports centre in Largs. You can find out more about the weekend by reading YPSP member Grace’s blog here.

Grace was also one of four YPSP members attending the Children 1st event in Stirling. Joining her were Dana and Charlotte, who helped to run the day, whilst Grace and Rae gave a presentation on their experience of PE and sport to date. Their presentation reflected on how their experiences affected their children’s rights before providing ‘top tips’ to ensure the rights of other children with disabilities are met through PEPAS (Physical education, physical activity and sport).

Once again, Grace wrote a blog to recap the day’s activities.

To find out more about upcoming SDS events, please view the SDS Calendar of Events on the events page.

13/03/2024

YPSP Member, Grace, Reviews Children 1st Event

By Grace, YPSP Member

On Wednesday 21st February, I attended the Children 1^st event: ‘A Conversation about Children’s Human Right’s in Sport’ – as part of my involvement on the SDS Young Person’s Sports Panel (YPSP).

If you are unfamiliar with Children 1^st, they are Scotland’s National Children’s Charity. Their ambition is for, “every child in Scotland to be safe, loved and well with their family.” This event, in particular, was focusing on their involvement in Child Wellbeing and Protection in Sport (CWPS) and their partnership with sportscotland.

The main goal of the day was for Rae and I to present our presentation on our experiences of sport as disabled young people. Our fellow panel members, Dana and Charlotte, were also there to support the registration of the 150 delegates from sport’s governing bodies (SGB) in attendance.

Leading up to my presentation, I was definitely nervous. Knowing I was going to be presenting in front of such a large group for the first time was enough to get my heart racing. Never mind the fact that it was 150 people from SGBs, from all across the country – many of whom are experts in the area of CWPS.

I found it helpful to remember that we are the experts in our own lived experience. We were being brave by standing up and sharing our experiences (some negative, some positive) of sports, and nobody could criticise us for that. Children 1^st were also very accommodating to those of us from SDS. They provided us with a lot of information beforehand to calm our nerves, a small breakout room for us to relax in on the day, and they were all-round accepting of our diverse needs.

We also had the chance to meet some other young people from the Scottish Rugby Youth Panel. It was lovely to chat to others who are just as passionate about a sport as we are, and to share our experiences of being on a youth panel.

In the end, the worry about our talk was over nothing. Our presentation was met with a lot of positive feedback. Our openness and honesty about our experiences, allowed for people to truly understand the need for children’s rights to be recognised in sport.

In summary, our presentation covered our (mostly negative) experiences of PE in school and how we were excluded from sport. PE teachers refusing to make adjustments to make sport accessible and ableism from other students in the classroom, infringed on some of our rights as young people, such as:

I have the right to be free from any discrimination (Article 2)

I have the right to an education (Article 28)

My education should develop my interests and talents (Article 29)

I have the right to play (Article 31)

We then gave advice on what could be done to make sport more inclusive. This was then highlighted by our discussion on how our involvement in disability sport has had such a positive influence on our lives. My involvement in Team United autism football, and Rae being part of Lothian Phoenix’s wheelchair basketball team, has definitely changed our lives for the better.

Our experiences of the SDS YPSP was another area we talked about. We mentioned how this experience allows us access for a lot of our rights as young people, such as:

I have the right to share my experiences, opinions and ideas and be taken seriously and involved in decisions that affect me (Article 12)

I have the right to express myself (Article 13)

I have the right to my own thoughts (Article 14)

I have the right to meet up with friends and join groups (Article 15)

We ended our presentation with a question for the audience: ‘What are some things you/your organisation could do to improve physical and social access to sport for disabled children and young people?’ This got some good, yet challenging, conversations up and running. We hope that the people who listened to our presentation can take some of their learning back to their sport. Disability inclusion in sport is our goal after all!

There were numerous other individuals who presented on the day, on a wide range of topics, including: incorporating the UNCRC into sport in Scotland, creating a rights-based approach and child-centered culture, the risk of right violations between children and adults in sport, and working towards a sporting world that protects, respects, and celebrates its people.

Having the opportunity to listen in on these courageous and truthful talks, and to get to be involved in discussions on how we can progress in the future, was an invaluable experience.

12/03/2024

10 Different Sports Showcased at Tayside Parasport Festival

By Emma Logan, Communications Manager

It was another successful Parasport Festival as Tayside welcomed 57 participants to their event on Wednesday 6th March.

Dundee & Angus College hosted the Parasport Festival which saw children and young people participate in nine different sports, including: athletics, judo, fencing, goalball, boccia, badminton, basketball, football and cycling.

Graeme Doig, Scottish Disability Sport’s (SDS) Regional Development Manager for Tayside, said: “We’ve all enjoyed another wonderful Parasport Festival in Tayside, and it was great to see so many pupils with smiles on their faces all day long learning new skills, increasing confidence and making new friends.”

Out of the 57 participants, 20 attended for the first time, which is a positive indicator of the increase in Parasport awareness within the region.

The event was a great celebration for the community, as three local authorities (Angus, Dundee City and Perth & Kinross) supported the Parasport Festival with children/young people attending from across 28 schools.

“The local clubs involved, along with Sports students from Dundee & Angus College, led the way with their sport, introduced adaptative equipment and demonstrated that with the right support and small adaptations, sport really is for everyone”, said Graeme Doig.

Elite Para athlete, Rory McKinna, was at the Parasport Festival showcasing his sport, Para sailing. Rory provided a talk to explain about Para sailing and even brought in one of his training boats.

“Probably one of the best things about the Parasport festival is the diversity of sports availabl”, said Rory.

He continued to say, “Quite often there’s things that you might not have the opportunity to see, just on a day-to-day basis. Sailing for instance, kayaking. They’re based on the water so if you’re not near the water then you might not naturally see those sports. So, coming along today you’ll get introduced to a bunch of things that you might have never considered before and you never know, it might just be the sport for you.”

Dundee City Council was represented by members of the Deaf Education Team from the Accessibility and Inclusion Service. They remarked on the Parasport Festival, saying: “We are delighted once again to be a part of Tayside Parasport Festival in Dundee. We always love to support this event because the organistaion is excellent, the communication and explanation of all events and all the activities is of an excellent standard and it is a wonderful opportunity for our pupils to come together and it shows the power of breaking down barriers through sport and the power of experiential earning for all our learners.”

Tayside will be hosting a second day for water sports, including swimming. More details for day two will be confirmed at a later date.

Forth Valley’s Parasport Festival will be taking place on Wednesday 14th March, which leaves the East of Scotland and Shetland. To find out more about SDS’s Parasport Festivals, visit here.

05/03/2024

Dumfries & Galloway Parasport Festival 2024

By William Moncrieff, Communications Apprentice

The Dumfries and Galloway Parasport Festival took place on Tuesday 27th February. The festival was held in DG1 Leisure complex, where various sports were being provided with fantastic opportunities to participate in; Swimming, Judo, Boccia and Pickleball.

SDS’s Dumfries and Galloway Regional Development Manager, Dianne Campbell, along with branch colleagues and the support of local sporting clubs, organised and delivered activities on the day.

Dianne believes that everyone played a crucial role in the festival and highlighted the partnership working that goes into such occasions by listing many of those involved. Thanks to Laura Vickers, Dumfries and Galloway Disability Sport (DGDS) Branch Coordinator, Dave Denholm, DGDS Chair, Dave Watt, DGDS Boccia Coach, Dumfries College Students, Dumfries High Sports Leaders, Paul Wilson from Scottish Swimming and coaches from the venue, Luke Struthers and JudoScotland coaches and Ryan and Charlie for Pickleball.

The event was fortunate to benefit from the support of volunteers from Dumfries and Galloway College. The students decided to volunteer at the event as they saw it to be a great opportunity to gain some practical experience.

One student, Kieran, explained, “I have enjoyed my day because I have learned something new”.

Kieran further explained that the day created a number of opportunities to work with a new range of participants: “It’s with a group of children that you don’t often get the chance to work with”.

Dianne believes that the Parasport Festival was a success, with a total of 20 participants: 14 boys and six girls. Numbers were up from the 12 attendees in the previous year.

When reflecting on the day, Dianne said, “I was delighted how the Dumfries Parasport event went and it was lovely to see an increase in numbers of children attending this year. So many positive comments from teachers, parents and children attending. We are already looking forward to next year’s event!”

There are still opportunities to find out more about your local Parasport festival and attend, visit https://scottishdisabilitysport.com/parasport-festivals-2024-dates-announced/

05/03/2024

West of Scotland Delivers Sold Out Parasport Festival

By Emma Logan, Communications Manager

Over one hundred children attended the West of Scotland’s Parasport Festival, which took place at On-X Linwood on Monday 4th March.

It was the second highest number of participants to ever attend a Parasport Festival in the West of Scotland.

Participants got to try a diverse variety of sports: athletics, cricket, powerchair football, football, basketball, swimming, boccia, badminton, Para canoe, tennis, table tennis and snow sports.

Having just joined Scottish Disability Sport (SDS) at the end of last year, it was the first Parasport Festival that Fraser Kennedy had to organise and it proved to be a great accomplishment.

“It was a really fantastic day, to have over 100 children attending from all across the West of Scotland was a huge success”, said the Regional Development Manager for the West.

“The day itself ran incredibly well thanks to all the students from City of Glasgow College and the coaches from the SGBs (Scottish Governing Bodies) and the community clubs that delivered a total of 13 different sports, ” Fraser said.

The event attracted returning participants as well as welcoming 74 children and young people to their first ever Parasport Festival.

“Ellie’s been before and she really enjoyed it”, said Andrea Martindale, Ellie’s mum.

“She loves the variety of sports. She’s doing some sports that she’s never even tried before. She loves that.”

As well as taking part in sport, Parasport Festivals provide a unique opportunity for children and young people to socialise and make new friends.

“She also enjoys being with people that also have disabilities, so she doesn’t feel so alone. So that’s a good support for her,” said Andrea.

Basketball Scotland is a regular attendee at SDS’ Parasport Festivals and the sport proved to be very popular on Monday.

“I love Parasport Festivals. We do them every year”, said Tina Gordon, Basketball Scotland’s Disability and Inclusion Manager.

She continued to say, “It’s amazing to see so many young children playing, having fun and it gives us a real opportunity to find new players and introduce the sport of wheelchair basketball and basketball to them.”

The West of Scotland’s event was the fifth Parasport Festival to take place this year. Upcoming Parasport Festivals include Tayside, Forth Valley, East of Scotland and Shetland.

Whilst registration has closed for both Tayside and Forth Valley, there is still time to sign up for the East and Shetland. To do so and for more information about the Parasport Festivals, visit here.