BGS (the Scottish Blind Golf Society) is a registered charity whose purpose is to provide access to training, support and competitions to registered blind and visually impaired people across Scotland. Recognised as a governing body by The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews they offer access to local, national and international competitions.
The latest newsletter is available to download here:
At 19 years of age Cerys McCrindle has been swimming since she was just 3 months old, and competitively since she was 11. Currently she swims with the South Ayrshire Swim Team Para Squad as well as having been selected for the Scottish National Squad.
In the last 4 years Cerys has been selected to swim for the Great Britain Down Syndrome Team competing in Paris, Nova Scotia and Sardinia, as well as many domestic events in Britain. Cerys has won numerous medals at these events and gained a European Record in the Women’s 4x50m Freestyle Relay in 2019. In 2019 she also was recognised for her amazing achievements at the Scottish Women in Sport Awards where she won the ‘Inspiration in Sport’ award.
In the past year Cerys has had to adapt to doing land training and online zoom sessions which you can imagine is very different to being in the water. Cerys has put a lot of effort into this to keep her fitness up and has also gained employment in a tailored job as a Sports Development assistant (2 year post working 24 hours a week) with South Ayrshire Council Sport and Leisure. Cerys is really enjoying this and hopes this will lead to becoming a Swimming Teacher when normality resumes. She is also working towards her Zumba Instructors qualification which will enhance her Freestyle Dance Teacher qualification she already has. Cerys has also volunteered her time to help coach people with additional needs in the ‘Learn to Swim’ programme.
With this list of accolades as well as her work and volunteering activities all before the age of 20, it is safe to say that Cerys is a hugely inspirational person in the world of disability sport.
Over the last couple of months Dumfries and Galloway Disability Sport branch have been working hard to keep our athletes engaged and physically active during the latest lockdown restrictions and the winter months.
To keep active safely we have . . .. .
January Miles Challenge
With plans to start some weekly sessions put on hold, we started the year positively by planning a January Miles Challenge. How many miles can we collectively complete in the month of January and where can we virtually travel too! This challenge was available for all our athletes and their families to take part in and involved any active method of travel such as walking, running, cycling, horse riding etc to get their miles total. Each participant who entered received their daily miles tracker sheet to keep track of all their miles throughout the month and at the end of the month, all miles were added together to create our grand total! With over 60 athletes and their families taking part, everyone did amazing, working together as a team to achieve an incredible collective mileage of 2421.08 miles! So where could we travel to??? After working out the miles, as a team we could travel from Dumfries to the North Pole!!
The January Challenge was very well received by our athletes and their families. Through the feedback we have from our athletes, all who participated highlighted that the January Miles Challenge increased their physical activity. We also received the following feedback from some of our athletes and parents:
“I had the incentive to walk further because it was a challenge.”
“Kept us healthy and helped cheer us up.”
“It was nice for Eleanor to be part of something in the current times.”
“The challenge helped us tone up and I lost a couple of pounds! Also kept my sanity on days which were hard going.”
February Fun Bingo & Miles Challenge
Following on from our January Challenge we launched our February Fun Bingo Challenge, an individual challenge where each participant received their own bingo sheet which had 25 exercises on it with the aim to try and complete as many as they can within the month of February. The challenge was entirely up to the individual, they could aim to do 1 exercise per day or 1 exercise per week and see if they can, complete 1 line or 2 lines of the sheet or see if they can complete all the challenges for a full house! We also continued with our miles challenge for the month of February to encourage everyone to keep getting out and about, staying active and counting the miles they complete for the month and we will see if we can beat our January total! Our February challenge was again very successful with 53 athletes and their families signed up to take part. At the end of our February challenge athletes were able to see how many lines of the bingo they had completed with some even managing a full house, and we counted our miles as a team for the month of February. With a high total to try and beat from January our February Miles did amazing and although we didn’t beat our January total, we did travel 2,227.5 miles, which was brilliant and virtually we could travel from Dumfries to Cyprus!
Again, our February bingo and miles challenges were very engaging for our athletes and their families and the feedback we have so far is very positive, with some examples as follows:
“I walk everyday just now so the challenge gave me a focus to set goals for myself.”
“Good, looking forward to the next challenge.”
March Wordsearch Challenge . . .
With the great feedback we have received from our previous challenges we have keep our challenges going and have a new challenge just launched for March, our March Wordserch Challenge. While out staying active, increasing your miles we are asking our athletes and families if they can complete the wordsearch of D&G Special Olympic Sports. The words can be made up form an item, building, place, nature etc We are also going to keep track of our miles for March and again see if we can beat our January and February totals. Our March Challenge is now live on our Facebook page and we look forward to seeing everyone staying active again during the month.
Zoom Catch Up and Activities . . .
We have been keeping in contact with athletes, parents, coaches and volunteers through our Zoom catch up and activities. These sessions are held every second week on a Tuesday and help keep everyone in contact through our catch up and fun sessions. To date we have held a quiz which was organised and delivered by our athlete Lennon Hughes and a treasure hunt organised by Laura Vickers. We have another couple of sessions due to take place over the next few weeks and we look forward to seeing everyone on our zoom calls.
Midlothian’s Samantha Gough had only been involved with the sport of Goalball for just over a year, before COVID and the subsequent lockdown struck however during that time she had made significant strides and is viewed as a player with huge potential.
Bonnyrigg based youngster Gough became involved in the sport after being introduced at a Scottish Disability Sport (SDS) Visual Impairment Sport Engagement Day in March 2019 where she was given the opportunity to try Goalball alongside a range of other sports. It was immediately evident that she had lots of ability in the sport.
Fast forward to March 2020 and Samantha, a pupil at Lasswade High School, is now an established member of the #GoalballFamily and is seen to have the potential to represent Great Britain in the near future. During this time, Gough has demonstrated dedication, travelling long distances (often to England) to train, compete and attend development camps. In addition to playing the sport, Samantha has also gained her Goalball Leaders coaching qualification, using this to assist SDS with grassroots delivery in local schools across the East of Scotland, including Blackhall Primary School in Edinburgh where a regular session has recently been established.
Exactly a year after initially trying the sport, Samantha was selected to attend a training camp specifically for developing Intermediate and Elite players. This camp also included a tournament which saw Samantha test herself against three players from the GB Woman’s Squad and also provided an opportunity to highlight her undoubted talent to the observing GB Woman’s Coach.
This is a remarkable rise through the sport in little over a year, taking the time out due to COVID into account, and demonstrates the opportunities available for local individuals should they wish to pursue a sporting pathway. Samantha was named as top female goal scorer at Intermediate & Beginner level for the 2019/2020 season – a remarkable achievement for a novice in the sport.
Samantha is also an active member of the Scottish Disability Sport Young Person’s Sport Panel, having been selected at the end of 2020.
A Grampian-based triathlete is taking on an eye-watering distance challenge in aid of local SDS Branch, Grampian Disability Sport.
Scott Munro, a Technical Manager for an ROV firm by day, invented the triathlon-style event after wishing to do something memorable and charitable for his 40th birthday last year. Unfortunately, COVID struck and his plans went on hold. In the meantime, Scott has been devoting a huge chunk of his life to training for the challenge which comprises of a whopping 28.5 mile stand-up paddleboard across Loch Ness, 585 mile cycle around the North Coast 500, and 95 mile run along the West Highland Way. He hopes to be able to complete the feat over 6 days this July.
The Branch is incredibly grateful to Scott for all the hard work he’s put into this, and for choosing them as the beneficiary of his fundraising. All money raised will be put to very good use as the Branch’s activities, events, participants, athletes and programmes start up again as restrictions end, and donations can be made here.
Follow Scott’s journey at www.scottishtriathlon.co.uk
If you, or anyone you know, lives with a physical, sensory or learning disability in Grampian or Shetland & is interested in getting involved in sport, please get in touch with Alison on alison.shaw@scottishdisabilitysport.com or 07828 744 848.
Twenty Nine young people engaged enthusiastically in the Young Persons Sport Panel and Young Start online ‘Homidential’ on Saturday 27 February 2021. Due to circumstances this was in place of the annual two day residential. The young people designed the exciting programme to provide an opportunity to connect and learn. The day started with a Kahoot quiz designed and delivered by the young people, it was incredible to witness the competitive spirit shown by all. This led nicely into three workshops on leadership delivered by Steven Coulter from sportscotland, Jennifer Ross from Scottish Target Shooting and Kirsty Ewen from SDS and SAMH. It was great to hear the insightful comments, questions and feedback from the young people to the presenters throughout the sessions. Huge thank you to the deliverers for putting together a such a great workshop. After lunch Scott Tait, from Weeflea, took the young people on a learning experience on how to make videos on your smart phone. Through the wonders of technology and Ross Foleys technical wizardry we could watch everyone’s short video at the end together. A perfect end to the day. We were delighted to have been able to be together and share such a successful day but we look forward to when we can all get back together in person.
A small group of young people from both programmes have come together to design, develop and deliver a series of three wellbeing sessions. Please see details below and sign up if interested.
Wellbeing & Me Pilot Sessions
The Young Start programme are piloting three sessions as part of a series; Disability, Wellbeing & Me. The sessions are taking place on Monday 8, 15, 22 March, 6:30pm – 8:00pm. Sessions are completely free so please get involved and use this link to sign-up.
On a rainy November day in 2017, I pulled into the car park at Moray Sports Centre HQ on Southfield Drive. As a new recruit with Scottish Disability Sport with a remit to drive forward high-quality sport and physical activity opportunities for people with physical, sensory and learning disabilities, I was in the process of visiting all of the leisure trusts, local authorities, Active Schools Teams and everyone that I would be working with regularly for the foreseeable future, and had been invited for an update about the MSC plans. As I scrambled around the development trying to find the right office, I could see a mound of dirt and some fencing in the distance – all that existed of the grand facility you see today.
After finding the right building & a short wait in reception, I was greeted with an enthusiastic handshake and a grin from ear to ear – Kathryn certainly extended one of the warmest welcomes I’ve ever had from a CEO.
Following a whistle-stop tour of the office where I was introduced to the small but efficient team of MSC project staff, Kathryn took me to the board room where the blueprints of the grand design were laid out across the large table. They were impressive! Everything you’d expect from a brand-new top-of-the-range sports facility, but with a very important addition. Absolutely everything was designed to be accessible to people with even the most profound disabilities. After a few questions about specific facilities, it was evident that Kathryn and her team had left no stone unturned when it came to inclusive sport and activity – the icing on the cake being the Changing Places facility especially designed for people who need assistance with their personal care. It was at this point that I realised that Kathryn and I were on the same page and that a very strong partnership would be forged between Moray Sports Centre and Scottish Disability Sport.
Fast-forward a little over 18 months – the building was up and our partnership working was in full flow.
The first order of business was working together to ensure that the official opening day had the golden thread of inclusion woven throughout it. In amongst the festivities were adapted cycling and boccia (delivered by the staff and volunteers from our local Branch, Grampian Disability Sport), Sporting Opportunities for Motor Activity (delivered by PAMIS), and a range of inclusive taster sessions delivered by the MSC team. These opportunities ensured that people of all ages and types of disabilities could get fully stuck in with the celebrations. The event was a resounding success and really gave us the drive to do more.
Although the main aim of my role is to engage and support people with disabilities in sport and physical activity, it takes a lot of behind the scenes work to get to this point. One of the main barriers we face is a lack of confidence amongst coaches & activity leaders, who often feel they don’t have the skillset to make their activities inclusive. This was something that Kathryn wanted to overcome from the very beginning, and so we arranged a UK Disability Inclusion Training workshop for the sports coaches and gym team. This helped to allay any anxieties they had about working with people with disabilities and gave them the tools and resources to adapt their activities and sessions to include everyone.
Another major challenge in developing opportunities for people with disabilities is ensuring that accessible equipment is available. Whilst the majority of sports and physical activities can be made inclusive through very minor adaptations, there are some instances where specialist items are required. Grampian Disability Sport is fortunate to have a number of smaller items of specialist equipment (adapted footballs, table cricket kit, adapted bats etc) available for organisations to borrow – some of which are in situ at MSC today. However, larger and more specialised kit needs to be bought 
in and is almost always accompanied by a hefty price tag. With the thirst for inclusive cycling growing after the launch event, it was decided that the Centre would purchase adapted bikes to enable people with disabilities to experience the thrill of cycling, and for families of a person with a disability to be able to cycle together. We were able to draw on the experience of Grampian Disability Sport, who had previously purchased a range of adapted bikes for their inclusive cycling hubs in Inverurie and Peterhead. They advised on which bikes would likely be used most often, recommended models and sourced suppliers. The Sports Development Manager at the time, Tori, and I then knuckled down to calculate the budget and complete the required funding applications. Thankfully, our efforts were successful and the Centre now boasts a fleet of 13 adapted bikes which cater for all abilities and disability types. MSC has recently been able to launch a hire service during Lockdown 2.0 and I really look forward to seeing families from across Moray enjoying and benefitting from this.
The Centre launched its disability sport timetable soon after opening and, prior to lockdown, offered a wide variety of inclusive and specialist sport and activity opportunities when the disability sport sessions joined forces with the 50+ offering to form the Prime-Ability programme, which includes activities to suit all abilities and tastes from badminton to boccia and dance to multi-sport. Many additional activities within the gym, adults’ and childrens’ programmes were also inclusive for people with disabilities. All this inclusive provision gives me so many options to present to people with disabilities and their families when I meet with them – during non-COVID times we’re thoroughly spoilt for choice in Moray and it just keeps getting better and better. MSC and I have already started conversations with Mark Reith from Chrysalis Tennis – a programme that provides free tennis opportunities for young people with Down Syndrome. Mark was keen to replicate the hugely successful programme he runs in Aberdeenshire and we felt that Moray Sports Centre would be a great venue of choice given its inclusive values and provisions and, particularly, with the imminent construction of the new tennis centre.
As part of the new tennis centre, we’ve been working together to source funding towards specialist tennis equipment, including a fleet of tennis wheelchairs to help introduce the sport to those with physical disabilities, and we’ll be working alongside a number of partners including the Active Schools Team, Tennis Scotland and the third sector to ensure that tennis is accessible to all from the outset.
Kathryn is a very out-of-the-box thinker so being at the helm means that the MSC team isn’t afraid of thinking big and pursuing ambitious targets including the aforementioned tennis facility and the development of the inclusive playpark – a one-of-a-kind facility open to all of the Centre’s patrons at no cost, the likes of which had never been seen in the area previously. The Centre did a tremendous amount of work during the tendering and selection process, building works and fundraising for the park, and it was fantastic to be consulted and kept informed at every stage of development. I remember excitedly eyeing up the equipment brochures and the proposals put forward by the
suppliers like a child in the midst of writing a letter to Santa. This was something that HAD to happen and so Grampian Disability Sport and I set about to spread the message far and wide across our networks to encourage our disability sport family to donate to the project’s fundraising page. I don’t know how successful our efforts were, but the park came to fruition and it’s wonderful to see people with and without disabilities making use of it together. When I’m telling local families about the activities available at the Centre, I always make a point of mentioning the playpark too (and the lovely café & Changing Places facility) because it means they can make a day out of it & the whole family can get involved.
Cross-promotion like this is one of the strengths of our partnership working. Rather than duplicating efforts or working in silo, we join forces to promote opportunities, support one another’s events and activities, and celebrate each other’s successes. The work of the Branch and I has frequently been featured in the MSC newsletters, and I am always delighted to share news from the Centre on the Branch’s social media pages and through my weekly e-bulletins to all the participants and families I work with. MSC was instrumental in helping promote the 2018 and 2019 Grampian Parasport Festivals (a multi-sport taster event for school-aged children with physical and sensory disabilities) and it was really beneficial to have MSC staff present at both events to share their experiences with other partners and to chat with families from the local area.
The partnership doesn’t just stop at MSC and I. We have a fantastic, close-knit network of likeminded sports development, Active Schools, third 
sector, education and sports club staff that get together routinely through Moray iPEPAS (Inclusive PE, Physical Activity & Sport) meetings to help coordinate efforts to improve provisions for people with disabilities. One of the bigger projects that we’re working towards is the roll-out of boccia – a Paralympic sport designed especially for those with profound physical disabilities but accessible to everyone – within education. It is hoped that when COVID restrictions allow, we’ll be able to introduce boccia to all Moray’s schools, and that pupils with disabilities can get together somewhere down the line to participate in fun competitions in the sport. When this was brought up for discussion, Kathryn immediately offered up the Centre’s Sports Hall as the competition venue. This will be a welcome and inspiring change of scenery for the youngsters, and we now lay in wait of restrictions easing so we can get detailed planning underway.
One of the unfortunate casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic was our jointly-planned Olympic and Paralympic Games celebration programme, which had been designed to engage more community sports clubs with the Centre, provide their volunteers and coaches with training to become more inclusive, engage more participants with and without disabilities in club sport and physical activity, and celebrate Japanese culture. Hopefully restrictions will ease enough in the run-up to the rescheduled Games this year and we’ll be able to return to planning this event, which we anticipate would be of huge benefit to the people of Moray.
Working closely with Kathryn and the team has meant that, in short, I can get my job done a lot more easily and effectively as most of the barriers we face in providing inclusive activity are removed. I’m also really proud to have made a small contribution to a few of the Centre’s successes. The MSC team is wonderful and we have managed to mutually support each other over the last few years to achieve some great feats. Kathryn has been incredibly accommodating with offers of desk space and a cuppa whenever I’m in town. I feel very fortunate to work in partnership with such a forward-thinking and inclusively-minded organisation that treats its partners like an extension of the team.
By Alison Shaw – Regional Manager for Grampian & Shetland.
This month Callum and Cadyn from the SDS young Persons Sport Panel met up (virtually, of course!) to find out a little more about each other…
Callum Sloan interviews Cadyn Thomson
This month, I had the chance to catch-up with 17 year-old Cadyn Thomson, from Perth, who is one of the new members of this years Scottish Disability Sport Young Person’s Panel. He plays Wheelchair Basketball as part of the Dundee Dragons and was in the winning team of the 2019 Junior NBA Championships. He also has competed in a few table tennis tournaments, expanding his sporting horizon. As well as being an Athlete for Dundee Dragons, Cadyn is also a Club Wellbeing Ambassador for the club which plays a key role, aiming to help coaches and athletes in the club open up about their mental health and “Get the conversation started”. As well as all of this, Cadyn has been part of the Positive Beginnings program since January. This program is very similar to the Young Start program that many of the other Panel members are on. It aims to give athletes the opportunities and qualifications to be coaches or one day be coaches in order to pass on their knowledge to the next generation of athletes.
However, since November, Cadyn has been recovering from knee surgery, which has meant that he has been unable to be as active over the last few months, however, he is slowly recovering. In many ways it’s perfect timing as the current COVID-19 restrictions means that he can fully recover without missing out on any sport and hopefully by the time clubs return, Cadyn is further into his recovery. As a remaining member of the first Young Person’s Sport Panel, it was nice to have the opportunity to talk to and get to know one of the new members and since we’re the same age, we had a lot in common as we’re both at school and hoping to go to Stirling University – Cadyn to do Sports Business Management and I to do Politics and Media. Hopefully this interview has helped Cadyn settle into the panel and allow him to get to know one of his panel members better.
Cadyn Thomson interviews Callum Sloan
This month, I had the chance to catch up with 17-year-old Callum Sloan from Dunfermline. Callum is a returning member to this year’s Scottish disability sport young person’s sport panel. He competes in Wheelchair Racing completing races that range anywhere from 100m to the London mini marathon which he has completed 5 times. Although Callum has unfortunately not been able to compete since February of last year due to having major back surgery and he has been recovering well and with managing to get back into his wheelchair back in December I do not doubt we will see him complete many more races. But the SDS young persons sport panel is not the only SDS group Callum is involved in – he is also a part of the young start program which gives upcoming athletes the coaching qualifications they need to have the ability to pass on their knowledge to the next generation of aspiring athletes. As a new member to the panel, it was a great opportunity to talk to one of the original panellists and since we were the same age, we had a lot in common as we are both at school and aspiring to go to Stirling university – Callum to do Politics and media, and myself to do Sports business management. This was a great thing which really helped me settle into my role on the panel.
Forth Valley Disability Sport successfully held their Annual General Meeting and Awards virtually over Zoom on Monday 22nd February 2021. The event was a triumph with over 45 in attendance including local, regional and national partners, sportscotland reps, Local Authority and SGB leads, clubs and volunteers. The purpose of the award ceremony this year was to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of our athletes, coaches and volunteers in the surreal year of 2020.
Angus Whyte, FVDS Chair Person, welcomed all the guests and conducted the AGM, Eva Finlayson presented 2020 highlights for FVDS and the GOGA (Get Out Get Active) project. Lizzie Jackson (a local FVDS athlete) delivered an inspirational speech ‘An Athlete Lockdown Story’ which was greatly received. Finishing the evening was Graham Harvey FVDS Branch Coordinator presenting the awards, highlighting the achievements of each award winners across the nine (closely contested) categories.
This years’ Award winners included:
The evening was hailed a great success by coaches, athletes, volunteers and partners alike. Graham Harvey FVDS Branch Coordinator said “Last year has been difficult and challenging for everyone. The nominees’ enthusiasm and hard work had paid off. The winners greatly deserved their awards. A special thank you to our speaker Lizzie Jackson for her inspirational words ‘An Athlete’s Lockdown Story’.”
Many thanks once again to our members and partners that attended the Virtual AGM and Awards FVDS looks forward to working with you all throughout the rest of 2021 and beyond.
If you or anyone else would like to know more information about Forth Valley Disability Sport please contact us by email; info@fvds.org.uk. Alternatively please visit our website www.fvds.org.uk and our social media platforms on Facebook and Twitter for general information, updates and award winners.
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