Break the Barrier: What Scotland’s 2026 manifestos mean for disability sport (and why it matters now)
By Mark Gaffney, Head of Policy, Scottish Disability Sport
Yesterday, I covered why making Scotland more inclusive and accessible is the right thing to do if we want to improve our nation’s health outcomes. Today we look at each of the main political parties in Scotland and what their manifestos are saying about their commitment to action.
For a wider take on how sport is covered in the party manifestos I would thoroughly recommend Malcolm Dingwall Smith’s insightful pieces reviewing each of the major parties and their commitment to action on sport.
The detail below will be more related to how each party intends to improve the lives of those with a disability. If we’re serious about health, education, social care, and equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI), then we have to be serious about disability sport and physical activity—not as an add‑on, but as a system outcome.
Scottish Disability Sport’s Call to Action is built on lived experience and evidence. It shows a profound participation gap: over 90% of disabled respondents do not meet recommended physical activity levels, even though 95% believe being active benefits their mental health and wellbeing. People aren’t opting out; they’re being locked out—by affordability, transport, inaccessible facilities, inconsistent support across systems, and fear that being active could jeopardise financial support.
SDS’ message to every party is clear: inclusion is a rights issue under UNCRPD Article 30, and it requires cross‑government delivery (sport, health, education, local government, social care, transport and EDI working together).
Below is an SDS‑lens summary of what the major parties’ 2026 Scottish manifestos offer—and our take on what needs strengthened.
Overall, it would be fair to say that sport is not a strong theme throughout and suffers in comparison to other areas such as Culture which sees a continuation and extension of funding levels to the tune of £100m with a further £50m uplift within 5 years. With green shoots of progress being seen in sport speaking as a collective voice, then this should be the least the sector aspires to. It also should be said that politicians need to absolutely do their bit too and commit to promises that were made. The doubling of the sports budget that was promised in the last government didn’t ever materialise, despite the welcome £40m uplift following the last budget. Figures can often be misleading and much of that £40m uplift is one-off funding – which will undoubtedly do good – but doesn’t ultimately give people the best chance to sustain, consolidate and develop impact over time.
What the parties are saying (through a disability sport lens)
Let’s start with the party that has been in power for nearly twenty years. The Scottish National Party (SNP) are the outgoing government and all up to date polling would suggest that they are set to continue to be the largest party at Holyrood – although, they may ultimately fall short of the majority that John Swinney would want. Whether a coalition is formed with another pro-independence party (i.e. the Greens) remains to be seen.
SNP: big on cost of living and NHS. Sport needs to be named, funded, and measured.
With an obvious overarching fundamental push for independence, the SNP manifesto launch messaging cites 50 steps it will take which features amongst them
- a commitment to extra help with cost of living
- new school breakfast clubs
- summer of sport
- public sector reform
- increased Additional Support Needs support.
There is a clear focus on tackling the cost of living and commitment to the NHS access with some commitment to a preventative approach through early intervention and prioritising self-management of care through a new app.
The usual hallmarks of an SNP administration are there with state-led support for university fees, prescriptions, school meals, dental and eye checks and winter payments for families with disabled children offset by higher tax rates for the highest earners – caveated by their contention of the “fairest and most progressive tax system in the UK”.
Continuing their aims of eradicating child poverty, the SNP will maintain the Scottish Child Payment and introduce Bright Start Breakfasts across all primary and special schools – ensuring a healthy start to the day for kids with breakfast and play amongst friends.
Further to this a Digital Inclusion Action Plan and a promise to tackle the cost of disability with the much sought after third-sector support for multi-year settlements for Disabled People’s Organisations (which ones exactly, we do not know but likely to be connected to the delivery of the Disability Equality Plan – £2.5m of additional investment) and a Transition to Adulthood Guarantee for all young people with disabilities.
Returning to healthcare now, the promises of investment in the NHS are evident with a community-care theme emerging throughout. Chest, Heart and Stroke Scotland will benefit to the tune of an initial £1m to support the expansion of new stroke rehabilitation gyms. There is a further commitment to work with people with lived experience to develop a long-term conditions framework with detail, again, a bit light.
In the SNP manifesto sport sits within the healthcare portfolio and is framed with a focus on international events, citing an exciting summer of sport ahead and the £40m of new investment. There is new Sports Taster Fund with boccia – and Scottish Disability Sport – one of the lucky few sports explicitly referenced. Free swimming lessons for every primary school child is highlighted with a commitment to statutory consultation with sportscotland and Scottish Swimming for every pool under threat of closure.
Further relevant commitments
- Any child with additional support needs will be supported through specialised ASN provision in school – regardless of where they go to school.
- Behaviour specialist teachers supporting schools
- Development teacher training specifically designed for teaching in special schools.
- BSL training for teachers with a pool of specialist deafblind teachers
- Bespoke employment apprenticeship scheme for young people with disabilities
SDS View: Sport appears important to the SNP particularly through a health and communities context. It is positive that SDS is explicitly referenced which shows disability sport is on the radar. The test is whether disability sport is treated as a system outcome—through proportionate funding, accessible facilities and travel, workforce training, and a consistent health/social care referral offer—not simply as a positive aspiration. The cross-portfolio work with Equalities and the Disability Action Plan will engender positive outcomes.
Scottish Greens: the most explicit disability sport platform
The Greens are the clearest in naming barriers SDS hears daily—lack of facilities/greenspace, prohibitive costs, and poor public transport—and treating sport as a wellbeing investment. Their manifesto includes commitments that map directly onto SDS’ Call to Action, including:
- Real‑terms, multi‑year funding for sport/active living organisations (stability matters for inclusion delivery).
- Protecting and requiring accessible, affordable, fit‑for‑purpose facilities through planning decisions.
- Widening access for disabled people and embedding disabled sport knowledge in public health and leisure settings—high alignment with our whole‑system ask.
- Children’s Sports Card: affordable access to sport and recreational activities
- A commitment to enhance support to disabled Scots and their carers and implementing recommendations of the Independent Review on Adult Disability Payment including scrapping the inhumane 20m rule
- Inclusive communication approaches across public bodies and services
Their “Disabled people” chapter also commits to incorporating the UN Convention on the Rights of Disabled People into Scots law and requiring Disabled People’s Organisations’ involvement in planning infrastructure—both highly relevant to inclusive facilities and services.
SDS View: strongest “what” on paper; delivery will depend on sustained investment and local implementation capacity. There is a strong commitment, as you might expect, to places and spaces being inclusive.
Scottish Labour: strong health/care reform story—sport must be hard‑wired into it
Labour’s manifesto is framed around NHS access, workforce reform, and tackling delayed discharge, including neighbourhood health hubs that co‑locate general practice with community health, physiotherapy and social care. This is a major opportunity for disability sport if we choose to use it: SDS is explicitly calling for “a health and social care system that prescribes appropriate physical activity opportunities at every stage of the individual’s pathway.”
Labour also highlights support around transitions into work and improving access to services—important in a landscape where disabled people fear being penalised for being active.
SDS View: disability sport is not consistently named as a deliverable outcome. The risk is “health reform without prevention pathways”—and physical activity becomes assumed rather than commissioned, referred, and measured.
Scottish Liberal Democrats: carers and community healthcare—missing a clear inclusion pathway into sport
The Liberal Democrats foreground faster access to care, long‑term workforce planning, and tackling delayed discharge—explicitly acknowledging that you can’t fix the NHS without fixing care. This aligns with SDS’ view that disability sport is part of prevention and independence, not an optional extra.
Their manifesto also highlights support for carers and improving services for people facing barriers—including disability employment gap ambitions—which matters because carers and social support networks are often the enablers of participation.
There is a strong ASN commitment in education through staffing and support and robust social care investment.
SDS View: as with several parties, there is no clearly defined “referral‑to‑community sport” pathway (health – social care – leisure trusts/clubs) with inclusion training and accountability. Without that, provision remains patchy and postcode‑dependent.
Scottish Conservatives: efficiency and reform—real risks for EDI capability and inclusive delivery
The Conservatives’ manifesto is driven by public sector reform and cost‑cutting, including reducing public bodies and reporting burdens. But one section is particularly concerning from an SDS inclusion perspective: it proposes banning public sector roles devoted exclusively to diversity, equality and inclusion.
Why this matters: SDS’ Call to Action requires disability inclusion training, inclusive communication, culture change, and partnership working across systems. That capability doesn’t appear by magic—it is built and maintained. Removing specialist inclusion infrastructure without replacing it with a robust, enforceable alternative risks weakening delivery at precisely the point we need it most.
SDS view: if “efficiency” becomes a proxy for stripping inclusion capacity, we will widen inequalities—especially in local services where disability sport opportunities depend on trained staff and accessible systems.
Reform UK (Scotland): economy-first, “welfare” reform, and cultural framing—major inclusion risks unless safeguards are explicit
Reform’s Scotland manifesto is explicit about its framing: it argues Scotland must reduce a perceived “work to welfare” imbalance, and it positions welfare as a “safety net, not a lifestyle choice.” It proposes tax reform and a broad “new economy” approach, and it criticises what it describes as “woke policies” in areas including immigration and gender.
On health, Reform says the NHS will remain free at the point of need but “needs reform,” and it links NHS performance problems to delayed discharge and system productivity.
SDS view: the Reform manifesto does not set out a clear disability sport or inclusive activity pathway, and its welfare rhetoric creates a clear risk against SDS’ evidence base unless counterbalanced by explicit safeguards. SDS’ survey found 40% fear losing financial support if they are seen to be more active, and our Call to Action demands government reassurance that being active will not negatively affect support. Any approach that increases conditionality, distrust, or fear—without crystal‑clear protections—could further suppress participation and worsen health inequalities.
This is not a theoretical concern. It is what disabled people told us, directly, in Scotland.
What we need next: a cross‑government “inclusion delivery deal”
Regardless of who forms the next Government, SDS is calling for a practical delivery package that connects health, education, social care, transport, and sport:
- Physical activity as a core part of health and care pathways: Build referral routes so every disabled person can access appropriate activity opportunities at every stage of their pathway—as the Call to Action sets out.
- Benefits reassurance that removes fear: Put safeguards in policy, communications and practice so disabled people can be active without worrying that visibility equals penalty.
- Self‑Directed Support that works consistently for sport and activity: End local variability and ensure SDS budgets can fund participation reliably.
- Accessible transport and facilities as enabling infrastructure: Investment, planning rules and local delivery must remove barriers around travel and inclusive spaces.
- Workforce training and inclusion capability: Inclusive delivery requires trained people and accountable systems—not just warm words.
Final thought
This election sits inside a wider national moment. SDS has deliberately positioned the period from the election through to Glasgow 2026 as the time to “reignite the conversation” and demand systemic change.
Disabled people are telling us they want to be more active—but they need Scotland to build access, not just celebrate inspiration.
If you’re an MSP candidate, policymaker, health leader, local authority, leisure trust, or sport organisation: let’s align around the Call to Action and commit to delivery that crosses the usual boundaries.
Links (for readers)
