With a big summer of sport ahead, SDS is proud to reaffirm our commitment to clean sport by backing UK Anti-Doping’s (UKAD’s) Clean Sport Week campaign.
Clean Sport Week is UKAD’s national awareness week, which runs from 23 – 27 May and champions clean sport, education and anti-doping initiatives with sports across the UK.
The theme for this year’s campaign is “what you see is 100% me” as we all want to see 100% hard work, determination and respect for the rules from athletes competing on the world stage. So, alongside UKAD, we are making it our mission to ensure all our athletes can say with confidence “what you see is 100% me” when competing this summer.
In the build up to Clean Sport Week, we have been working with UKAD to complete the Assurance Framework, which National Governing Bodies must do to show they are meeting their anti-doping responsibilities. In addition, we are ensuring all our athletes are prepared for their upcoming competitions by taking part in UKAD’s 100% me education programme and by inviting them to attend the Clean Sport Week webinar on Tuesday 24 May, which is open to all and will look at important anti-doping topics and advice for preparing for a Major Games.
We also encourage anyone in our sporting community that would like to learn more about anti-doping to sign up to UKAD’s free new Introduction to Clean Sport course via its website, here.
To find out how athletes can excel on the world stage sign up to UKAD’s Clean Sport Week webinar here, and follow @ukantidoping on social media to see a range of educational and exciting content throughout the week.
To find out more about UKAD’s Clean Sport Week initiative click here.
Salary: £45,502 per annum Permanent, full-time Based in Glasgow (temporarily home based)
sportscotland is the national agency for sport in Scotland. Our vision is an active Scotland where everyone benefits from sport. Are you passionate about Equality, Diversity and Inclusion? Do you have the skills and drive to facilitate real strategic change? If so, this might be the next role for you!
We are currently looking for an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager to join our Strategic Planning team who will champion EDI in sportscotland and across the sport sector.
We have set the ambition that inclusion underpins everything we do. We have a new approach to guide us in delivering this. We need an enthusiastic, skilled equality, diversity and inclusion expert to help us achieve this goal.
As the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager, you will work with internal staff and a range of partners including equality groups, national agencies, governing bodies of sport, local authorities and leisure trusts.
With skills and experience in facilitating strategic change, you will need strong communication and influencing skills and be able to engage people with very different levels of expertise in this area.
In return for the above, we offer employee benefits such as flexible working, generous holidays, Cycle2Work, fantastic discounts, a great pension scheme (19.3% employer contribution), support with your personal development and much more.
Please apply online and attach your CV and covering letter detailing why you meet the requirements.
We are a Disability Confident employer. If you have any difficulties with your application because of a disability please contact hr.recruitment@sportscotland.org.uk and we will discuss how we can help you.
Closing date for completed applications: 31 May 2022
SAMH (Scottish Association for Mental Health) have launched a new initiative to use the power of sport to help people manage their mental health.
The initiative will harness the huge benefits of physical activity and sport with clubs, organisations and activity providers encouraging people to connect with their local community to raise self-esteem and reduce isolation.
The launch event was held at the Oriam in Edinburgh, with the Minister for Public Health, Women’s Health and Sport Maree Todd in attendance.
Abby Cook, Forth Valley Disability Sport GOGA Officer and Young Start graduate represented SDS at the launch to share her story about how sport changed her life. She is now encouraging others who experience poor mental health to discover sport as she says it not only builds physical strength but helps your mental health to grow stronger. Abby struggled with anxiety and an eating disorder in her early teens after a condition she had since birth Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS), which causes your joints to easily dislocate causing a lot of pain, worsened and left her unable to walk and needing to use a wheelchair.
She said: “I was a competitive swimmer up until the age of 13 and loved cross country running. Physical exercise was my life but it was taken away from me overnight when my condition became so bad that I ended up being housebound for six months and unable to attend school. I became very anxious, depressed and ashamed of my disability.
“I came across Forth Valley Disability Sport when I was at breaking point and looking for a way to meet like-minded people in my local area. Sport wasn’t the main motivator for joining, I found the social aspect helped save my life. It’s the chats with someone before and after you take part in a sport that really helped me, I found myself meeting new people and really looking forward to going back each week.”
Snowsport England and Snowsport Scotland are starting a talent search for the para snowboarding stars of the future, in particular women between the ages of 16-25 with an upper limb difference.
It Could Be You!
Snowboarding is a great sport that is active, social, creative and you can do it in some of the most beautiful places in the world. If you do any sports that require balance and a strong core then you’ll be well suited to snowboarding. The obvious sports with similarities to snowboarding are skateboarding, surfing and wakeboarding, but people from backgrounds such as horse riding, cycling and gymnastics have also become amazing snowboarders.
If you like the idea of snowboarding then sign up and you could be picked for one of the week long Fast Track sessions this summer (2022). The group lessons will involve instruction from a qualified instructor over 4/5 days at one of the indoor snow centres across the UK. No prior snowboard experience required!
Tell Me More About Para Snowboarding
Learning to snowboard could be just the start. If you’ve got a head for speed and a competitive streak, then competitive Para Snowboarding takes the format of racing, both against the clock and head to head. The courses can include banked corners, undulating terrain and jumps. Similar to BMX and mountain bike trails. Training for this sport is varied and never gets boring, along with time on snow you will use acrobatics facilities, practice other board sports and use gyms.
There are three levels of competition for para snowboard internationally. Starting at Continental Cup before graduating to World Cup and then the biggest stage of all: The Paralympics. At the moment there are women in the Upper Limb category at Continental and World Cup levels but, there aren’t enough to feature at the Paralympics which is why you are needed to help make history!
Scottish Disability Sport (SDS) enjoy a close relationship with Scottish Swimming and continue to work collaboratively to support and develop opportunities for participants with disabilities to get swimming across the country.
Participation opportunities are available to all individuals who would like to swim. The inclusive nature of swimming enables people of all abilities, regardless of experience or background to come together, become connected and get involved.
This week we will be putting a Spotlight on Swimming, our partnership with Scottish Swimming and the inclusive opportunities that are available for people with disabilities. We truly believe that Everyone Can Swim.
Getting Involved in Swimming
Parasport Festivals: Swimming is a mainstay of the SDS Parasport Festivals with many children and young people given a taste of swimming for the first time under the watchful eye of Scottish Swimming staff who are quick to identify and support anyone who is keen to take the sport further. Parasport Festivals have been a key method of engaging school aged young people at grassroots level and supporting them into club activity.
Keep an eye on our Social Media channels for information on upcoming Parasport Festivals.
Learn to Swim & See My Ability – Everyone Can Swim!
Learn to Swim is an inclusive programme that was launched to provide opportunities for young people to become confident, safe and happy swimmers, and to raise standards and achieve consistency in swimming programmes across Scotland.
See My Ability is an inclusive programme that encourages children with a disability to learn to swim. Swimming provides the opportunity to learn a life skill whilst interacting and having fun in a group environment. This should be no different for a child with a disability and where possible your child will be included in a class with their peers.
There are many inclusive opportunities to swim across the country and you can use the Scottish Swimming Club Finder to find an opportunity near you here:
SDS can also support and advise you if you would like to get involved in swimming, where we can work in partnership with Scottish Swimming to find an appropriate and inclusive opportunity for you.
Everyone can swim, and these leading performers all started off somewhere – could this be you?
Toni Shaw
Paralympian Toni Shaw came through the Learn to Swim programme at the age of 8, where she soon developed a talent for swimming where she joined Cults Otters before progressing through the pathway to the University of Aberdeen Performance Swim Club. Her classification is S9 and her favoured events being the 400m Free, 100m Free & 100m Fly.
By the age of 14 Toni held 14 Scottish national swimming records where she was then selected to compete at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, and in 2019 she was to set a new World Record time in the S9 200m butterfly at the Para-swimming World Series in Berlin in 2019 when she was just 15 years old. Following this she won 6 medals at the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships, taking gold in both the 4x100m medley relay. and 4x100m freestyle relay
Toni was then selected to represent Team GB at the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, where she medalled in her first games taking bronze in the 400m freestyle event, setting a new PB and Scottish record in the process.
Stephen Clegg
Stephen comes from a family of Paralympic athletes, with both older sister Libby and brother James winning medals for ParalympicsGB at London 2012 in athletics and swimming.
Stephen started swimming in 2014 and quickly took to the sport, breaking through to make his major debut at the 2016 IPC Swimming European Championships in Funchal, Portugal, where he made three finals and set a new personal best in the 400m freestyle S13.
He made his Paralympic debut at Rio 2016 where he recorded his best result in the final of the 100m backstroke S12, finishing in 5th place.
At the 2018 European Para Swimming Championships in Dublin, Ireland, Stephen won three bronze medals and set two new British records.
In 2019 Stephen claimed his maiden global title with a silver medal in the S12 100m butterfly final.
Stephen represented Team GB at the Paralympic Games for the second time in Tokyo, where he got on the podium 3 times with 1 silver and 2 bronze medals.
Scott Quin
Since making his international debut at the 2011 IPC Swimming European Championships in Berlin, Scott has continued to demonstrate his potential by producing consistent results in his favourite event, the 100m breaststroke SB14.
He won silver medals in that event at the 2014 European and 2015 World Championships, before repeating that success in Rio in 2016 where he took the silver medal in his first Paralympic Games.
Following his first Games, Scott once again claimed silver in his favoured event at a home World Championships in London in 2019.
At the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, he added to his Paralympic medal tally with a bronze medal, once again in the 100m breaststroke.
Scottish Swimming offer plenty of Coaching, Education and Learning opportunities for those who would like to inspire the next generation of swimmers in Scotland.
SDS is delighted to welcome Josh Thomson as the new Boccia Development Officer. The role is nationwide with an office base at Caledonia House in Edinburgh.
Josh said, “I am excited to be taking on this role and I can’t wait to get out and start meeting all members of our Boccia community. I believe Boccia has excellent potential to grow and boost its profile nationally. My aim will be to get more people participating in Boccia as well as improving our infrastructure and pathways.
“I have had a lifelong interest in sport and tried to participate in as many as possible as a child growing up. My main passion was tennis which led to me becoming a tennis coach where I worked for a wide variety of clubs and organisations. This gave me experience developing sports at a grassroots level as well as helping to develop player pathways. One organisation I worked for was Live Borders, who gave me invaluable experience across the board and my first opportunities in disability sport delivering tennis sessions regularly, assisting with parasport festivals and helping out with Boccia in the Borders. My time with Live Borders was my motivation behind wanting to make sports development my career and this helped massively during my studies at University of Stirling as I graduated with a first-class degree in Sports Studies.
“Although I have only briefly worked in Boccia, this is a role I am very passionate about, and I look forward to building on my Boccia knowledge and understanding more about our boccia community in Scotland. I will be aiming to get out and meet as many of you as possible.”
Perth & Kinross Disability Sport (PKDS) are delighted to be working in partnership with Aberfeldy Plus, Scottish Disability Sport and a number of local community sports clubs to make sport and physical activity accessible in Highland Perthshire so people of all ages with physical, sensory and learning disabilities or additional support needs can get active and enjoy the benefits that sport and physical activity brings.
PKDS Branch Coordinator, Graeme Doig explained “I have always been conscious of the barriers to participation faced by many people in Perth & Kinross due to it’s large geographical size meaning many people living in rural communities find it challenging to engage in weekly sport and physical activity. When I got a call from Jane Carmichael at Aberfeldy Plus, we put our heads together and came up with the PKDS Highland Perthshire Disability Sport Project.
“The project aims are to work with local community clubs to shape the development of new weekly sessions for people of all ages and abilities with physical, sensory and learning disabilities or additional support needs, to encourage more people with disabilities to take part in sport and physical activity and to engage and support local coaches and volunteers in the development and delivery of these sessions.”
The first session was on Sunday, 1st May at Wades Park in Aberfeldy, delivered by coach Gregor Ross from Aberfeldy Rugby Club and proved to be a huge hit with everyone taking part and parents alike. Jane Carmichael, Aberfeldy Plus told us “It was great fun and everyone enjoyed it. It was really beneficial and a good work out for all, the feedback from the parents and those taking part was really positive” Gregor Ross added “It was brilliant to coach such enthusiastic players, I can’t wait for next week’s session.”
Graeme continued: “Coach Gregor did a fantastic job and made sure everyone was meaningfully included in a range of fun activities whilst coaching the building blocks behind the sport of rugby. The rosy cheeks and smiling faces told it’s own story throughout the session. It truly was a fantastic example of inclusion for all.
“Rugby is just the first of many sports to be delivered as part of the project. Every 4 weeks we will introduce a new sport session to give everyone a range of opportunities to try and to be supported to join the local club for those sports they enjoy. It’s going to be a busy time and over the next few months where we will be delivering Tennis, Bowling, Cricket, Football, Judo, Canoeing, Archery, Nordic Walking, Cycling, Swimming, Climbing, Boccia, Dance and Fitness, all delivered by local coaches and volunteers in the Highland Perthshire area.
“At the end of March, we organised Disability Inclusion Training through Scottish Disability Sport for all the coaches and volunteers involved in the project which was well attended and received.
“PKDS is committed to our No Cost Participation approach which sees all our weekly sessions, development and competitive events, education courses and programs delivered at no cost to the participant. For this project, we would like to thank and acknowledge the Basil Death Trust for funding to make this project happen at no cost to those taking part.”
Every session is open to new people of all ages to come along, give it a go and get involved. No experience is required and all equipment is provided.
Please contact Graeme Doig at graeme@pkds.org.uk for more information and to get involved.
The Daily Mile, supported by INEOS, is today celebrating its 10th Birthday with a huge global event, bringing together 335,000 children across the globe.
At an in-person event today in Dundee, Scotland, over 800 children participated in The Daily Mile together.
While at the same time, a global virtual event took place with 1,340 partner schools – 335,000 children across Europe, U.S., Africa, India taking part in The Daily Mile.
The Daily Mile is a transformative initiative where children run, jog, wheel or walk for fifteen minutes every day, improving the health, happiness and wellbeing of millions of children.
Elaine Wyllie, Founder of The Daily Mile, says:“We want to get as many children around the world doing The Daily Mile as possible, so the fact that we’ve been able to do this mass global event with thousands of schools to celebrate our 10th Birthday is a real testament to the enthusiasm behind the initiative and the positive benefits that The Daily Mile has on children’s physical, mental and social health.”
The Daily Mile, supported by INEOS, today celebrated its 10th Birthday with a huge global event that was designed to get as many children and primary schools as possible around the world moving on the same day.
In Dundee over 800 children took part in what was the largest ever mass Daily Mile, in the grounds of a transformed Baxter Park that included a stage, music and guest speakers. The children came from local primary and SEN schools across Dundee.
Guests at Baxter Park included The Daily Mile founder Elaine Wyllie MBE, Public Health Minister Maree Todd, Team Scotland and GB Hockey Player Charlotte Watson, Scotland and GB Team middle distance runner Kane Elliott, GB Paralympian Wheelchair Curler Aileen Nelson as well as other Daily Mile ambassadors.
At the same time, 335,000 children around the world took part in a virtual event – across 1,340 schools in 21 countries from Scotland to New Zealand. Marking the world’s largest Daily Mile event.
The Daily Mile, supported by INEOS, is a transformative initiative where children run, jog wheel or walk for fifteen minutes every day in school, in which time, most people will average a mile or more. The initiative has enjoyed phenomenal success since it was started by then Headteacher Elaine Wyllie just ten years ago at a single primary school in Stirling, Scotland. Today over 3 million children across 14,000 schools in 87 countries globally are now running The Daily Mile.
The initiative believes there is more to be done if we are to provide the opportunity of good health and well-being to all children, wherever they are in the world and its aim for the next ten years is to significantly increase the number of children that are able to enjoy The Daily Mile.
Elaine Wyllie MBE, Founder of The Daily Mile says: “We are so excited to celebrate 10 amazing years of The Daily Mile – what an incredible journey it has been so far, starting from just a simple idea at my school in Scotland to now an essential part of the day in thousands of schools around the world.
“Multiple scientific studies continue to show The Daily Mile improves children’s physical, mental and social health as well as their engagement at school – and today’s event has been a fantastic way to celebrate all we have achieved, thanks to the incredible children, teachers, schools and partners we have worked with other the years who champion our ideals and support our ambition to see every child enjoy the benefits of The Daily Mile.”
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Founder & CEO of INEOS, comments:“INEOS has supported the Daily Mile for years because it’s a free, simple and effective way to improve children’s physical and mental wellbeing. It has been a natural fit for us to work with an initiative that is so passionate about helping more children enjoy exercise more often, and we look forward to its success as it continues to transform more lives around the world.”
Public Health Minister, Maree Todd, said:“I am passionate about the many physical, mental and social benefits the Daily Mile brings and am delighted that this initiative, born in Scotland, is celebrating its 10th anniversary in Dundee.
“As school children from across the world come together to take part in the Daily Mile celebrations I look forward to seeing the impact of this simple and free initiative. I give my thanks to all the school teachers and those involved in providing their communities with the opportunity and support for children to be active each day.
“I am committed to Scotland becoming a Daily Mile Nation and myself really enjoy taking part. Over and above the health benefits it also gives me the opportunity to connect with nature, explore my local environment and meet new people along the way. “I would encourage everyone across the world to join in and take part in the Daily Mile to experience these fantastic benefits.”
Mel Woods writes for SDS about how a welcoming, inclusive environment allowed her to thrive in athletics after acquiring her disability in 2018.
Initially after I acquired my disability in 2018 I was driven to get back in to sport and find something I enjoyed again. I got in touch with Scottish Disability Sport to find out all the options that were available to me. From there I got involved in athletics and tennis. I started by going down to Red Star Athletics Club (Glasgow) and meeting the coaches and athletes within the group. Seeing the range of athletes, their abilities and what they had achieved motivated me to get involved.
I managed to borrow equipment to get started, which was very fortunate as getting access to a chair can often be the hardest part. It can be hard to try something new and know whether you will enjoy it if the equipment is not available, highlighting how important this really is. I was going along to club sessions weekly and then when I got my own chair a few months later, I committed to training twice a day in sight of getting better (I was supported by a couple of different charities to get equipment).
I was lucky to join Red Star and have the support and experience of coaches (Ian Mirfin) who knew the pathway. This ultimately allowed me to know what was required of me in each stage of progressing through the rankings. It was also so important to have athletes within the club to ask questions to – knowing what they had achieved and understanding how they did so. I would recommend to anyone to be put in contact with athletes that have experience in the sport to get a better understanding of competing and equipment. Unlike mainstream/able bodied sports, there is less information out there so having people to speak to is so important. Equipment is a massive part of the sport and finding out what would suit your needs best is a hard task.
I started entering races in my first year of the sport (2019) to get experience and mostly for enjoyment. I was informed about the classification process, getting that organised as soon as I could. After my first year of competing I got on to the British Athletics development academy, offering further contacts and support. I continued finding out more about racing, having people to ask questions to and ultimately point me in the right direction.
I didn’t get much opportunity to compete in 2020, but a few races proved some significantly faster times and allowed me to get on to the British Athletics Futures Academy.
Ultimately I didn’t have any overly specific goals – other than improving. I knew I was a beginner and had a long way to go, but I just focused – and now continuing to focus – on seeing how good I can be. That has all come through a mixture of commitment and dedication to training and having coaches/athletes around to support and guide along the way.. Getting on to the pathway system just gave me confidence that I was moving in the right direction.
The 12th West of Scotland Parasport Festival was held on the 3rd March at the On-X Linwood in Renfrewshire, where 65 young people with disabilities of physical and sensory from mainstream schools took part in a variety of exciting sports.
On the day we were delighted to welcome children from all 13 local authorities in the West of Scotland, with dedicated coaches putting on inclusive and exciting sessions the participants. At the end of a fun, inspiring day the feedback was excellent – “It was the best I’ve had in sport”, “Awesome” and “Sportacular” summed up the day for the participants.
There were 9 sports on the day, where we were delighted to invite coaches from the following organisations to run appropriate and engaging activities:
Athletics– Scottish Athletics and Red Star AC
Basketball– Basketball Scotland
Badminton– Badminton Scotland and Glasgow Disability Badminton Club
Boccia– Scottish Disability Sport and GB Boccia
Football– Partick Thistle Charity Trust and Scottish Powerchair Association
Please have a look at our events calendar with all SDS events for the rest of the year as well as keeping an eye on our social media channels to keep up to date with everything disability sport in Scotland – Twitter, Facebook & Instagram.
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Toni Shaw
Stephen Clegg
Scott Quin
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