To mark the end of the initial period of the See My Voice project, British Blind Sport’s Young Leaders are hosting a conference to share valuable learnings and experiences that the project has delivered over the past 3 years.

See My Voice is a British Blind Sport project for 10-20 year olds focusing on volunteering and leadership in sport and physical activity. So far, SMV has helped over 100 young people achieve leadership qualifications and gain credible employability skills and sector experience.

 The See My Voice Conference will be aimed at all sport sector organisations who work with volunteers. This unique event will provide the opportunity to share learning shaped by the experiences of See My Voice Young Leaders in order to help other organisations improve the experience of their volunteers and ensure that inclusivity is naturalised into the volunteering process.

 The conference is driven by young people with sight loss and will consist of workshops to help organisations understand how they can diversify their workforce and shape activities to become more inclusive.

 There will also be workshops delivered by members of organisations who hosted volunteers, to discuss the impact and value that the volunteers brought to them and what they learnt about inclusivity and accessibility in the process.

 BBS will also be showcasing its new toolkit developed based on Young Leader feedback which is designed to help organisations make their volunteering programmes more accessible. It will include tips and advice on the adjustments that need to be made to the application process, communications, volunteering roles and other aspects within the organisation.

 See My Voice Support Assistant Kian said, “We’re really happy to be able to deliver the See My Voice Conference this year – even if the format has had to be adapted due to Covid-19! It’s important for us that the experiences of our Young Leaders in their voluntary roles provide us with learnings and knowledge that we can share with the wider sector to encourage change and progress in terms of inclusivity. We want to make it the norm for someone with a visual impairment to be able to volunteer with an organisation easily, without having to overcome various barriers and so we hope this conference will give organisations the confidence and tools they need to be able make their workforce more diverse.”

The See My Voice Conference is open to any sports sector organisation team members who work with volunteers. It will run on Wednesday 25^th November and Thursday 26^th November, from 1:00pm – 3:30pm on both days.

For more information and to register for the conference, please visit www.bit.ly/SMVConference

If you have any queries, please contact Young Leaders Officer, Tommy, on tommy@britishblindsport.org.uk or 07494104806

A dedicated and long-term member of the Grampian Disability Sport committee has been awarded a British Empire Medal in the latest Queen’s Birthday Honours list for her commitment to volunteering & making a difference to people with disabilities.

Pauline Stirling, GDS’ Vice Chair, has taken on a multitude of roles since the creation of Aberdeenshire Disability Sport 20 years ago, and has spent an incredible 50 years volunteering in various roles for various organisations & has been a key driver behind developing inclusive practice across the whole of Grampian.

As well as being a dedicated swimming coach with specialist swimming club, Garioch Gators, Pauline coordinates entries for national swimming events on behalf of GDS, volunteers at regional galas, has played an integral role with Special Olympics Grampian, developed her own disability-specific multi-sport and activity opportunities in her local area and even had a stint with her local Cub group.

Pauline is an incredibly talented and dedicated volunteer with a passion for inclusion and we’re incredibly grateful for the invaluable contributions she’s made over the years. The awarding of a BEM is so very much justified.

Congratulations to Pauline on this awesome award, and a further congratulations to inclusive Grampian table tennis coach, Charlie Flint, who also earned himself a BEM for his efforts in developing table tennis across the region.

If you, or anyone you know, lives with a physical, sensory or learning disability in Grampian and is interested in getting involved in sport, or if you’d like to get involved in volunteering with Grampian Disability Sport, please get in touch with Alison on alison.shaw@scottishdisabilitysport.com or 07828 744 848.

Bowls Scotland are delighted to announce our High Performance squad as preparations get underway for the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The squad selected is a preliminary shortlist of athletes that will be in contention for the final selection process for the Games. Those successful, will go on and represent Team Scotland in Birmingham as Scotland’s lawn bowlers will be looking to bring home more medals after major successes at the last two Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the Gold Coast.

There is an abundance of national and international experience throughout the men’s, women’s and parabowls squads. This will be the first opportunity for Scotland’s elite players to train under the new High Performance structure, which will help ensure the final squad selected to play on the greens at Royal Leamington Spa in 2022 will be as prepared as possible.

This is the first stage of the High Performance programme and resources will soon be put in place to grow the structure and deliver a similar level of support for our developing players who are aspiring to represent Scotland at future World Championships and Commonwealth Games.

Eight high-quality coaches have also been selected to help deliver effective training sessions and one-to-one assistance for the players. Alongside their significant coaching knowledge, several of these coaches have represented Scotland at the highest level and will be vital additions to the new programme.

Bowls Scotland’s High Performance Coach, David Gourlay MBE, said: “The selected squads demonstrates the depth of talent and experience that exists in Scottish bowls and signifies the first step on our journey to Birmingham. I have complete confidence in the players selected and also the coaching structure which will support our players.”

Bowls Scotland’s Para-Bowls Co-Ordinator, Bob Christie, added: “The selection panel have named a mixture of experienced and up and coming talented players to compete for places at Birmingham 2022. This has given them a great opportunity to develop into medal contenders whilst engaging in the exciting new High Performance programme which is tailor made to meet the players requirements.”

The Para Bowls High Performance squad is:

Para Bowls
Robert Barr (Jordanhill BC – Visually Impaired)
John Fox (Spateson BC – Visually Impaired)
Melanie Inness (Coltbridge BC – Visually Impaired)
Mary Stevenson (Shanks BC – Visually Impaired)
Garry Brown (Blackwood Victoria BC – Physically Disabled)
George Guthrie (Maryhill BC – Physically Disabled)
Garry Hood (Ayr Craigie BC – Physically Disabled)
Rosemary Lenton – (Crichton BC – Physcially Disabled)
Barbara McMillan (Kelty BC – Physically Disabled)
Kevin Wallace (Clackmannan BC – Physically Disabled)
John Wardrope (Ayr Seafield BC – Physically Disabled)
Pauline Wilson (Willowbank BC – Physically Disabled)

Coaches
Natalie Docherty (Kelvindale BC)
Sarah Jane Ewing (Abbeyview BC)
Chris McGready (Grangemouth BC)
Eric McMillan – (Cowdenbeath BC)
Billy Mellors (Haddington BC)
Frazer Muirhead (Bankton Mains BC)
David Peacock (Danderhall MW BC)
George Sneddon (Broxburn BC)

Congratulations to all the Young Start Coach Apprentices who successfully completed their one year training throughout 2019/2020 and welcome to the new cohort of young people who are just starting out on their coaching journey for 2020/2021.

The programme supported by The National Lottery Community Fund will offer athletes the opportunity to thrive and become sports coaches by:

• Accessing new skills and training opportunities to support them to gain coaching qualifications.
• Providing support of an experienced mentor
• Signposting to employment and volunteering opportunities
• Gaining new friends
• Building confidence to put learning into practice
• Developing their independence through better physical, mental and emotional wellbeing

The coach apprentices who successfully completed their training in 19/20 were:

• Callum Sloan
• Craig Smith
• Matthew Copley
• Laura Pilkington
• Steven McCormick
• Adam Donnachie
• Peter Waugh
• Michael McCraw
• Shannon Crosbie
• Neil Ferguson
• Mark Lumdsen
• Caitlyn Ross
• Abby Cook

What a fabulous group of young people and SDS is proud of all their achievements and wish them well in their coaching. Find out more about the programme by watching the Young Start summary video here

SDS welcomed the next group of young people onto the Young Start Coach Apprentice programme on Monday 5 October. They are:

• Philipp Euler
• Lennon Hughes
• Brenna Collie
• Shubhankar Gokhale
• Murran Mackay
• Cameron Adam
• Finlay Davidson
• Cameron Hemphill
• Callum Sloan
• Grace Stirling
• Owen McGookin
• Sophie Jones
• Abigail Bainbridge
• Peter Waugh

It is with great pleasure we can now announce we have a new programme of events for children, young people and their families. Due to the ongoing Covid 19 situation we have still suspended our face to face events and our new events will all be delivered online.

We will continue to monitor the current situation and hope to resume face to face events in the future.

These online events will still aim to deliver the core objectives of our Shape and Share programme.

Each event offers:

• A chance to meet other families
• Activities, games or crafts for younger children
• Engagement opportunities for young people
• Support, information and discussion for families on a range of topics relating to everyday life at home, education, transitions, social life and leisure, mobility and independence.
• Opportunities to have your say, shape and get involved in local and national campaigns.
• Information about wider services from RNIB and partner organisations.

All children and young people aged 0-25, their siblings, parents and family members are welcome to attend.

Full details of the events on offer for the autumn term are detailed below.

Our Children, Young People and Family (CYPF) teams can provide information and advice for parents and young people. Contact your local team.

You can book a place on any of the events below by filling out our online booking form.

To be added to our distribution list or for more information about these events please email cypf@rnib.org.uk.

Autumn Events Programme

Each event has a target audience, but this is a guide only, if you have queries about the suitability of an event for your child please contact us. Places are limited so booking early is advised to avoid disappointment.

Shape and Share – Halloween Family Spooktacular
Trick or Treat Family Quiz
Date: Thursday 29 October 2020
Time: 18.00 – 19.30
Who should attend: Children, Young people and their families
Event Details:
Our trick or treat quiz is the first of our ‘Halloween Spooktacular’ activities. Join us for an hour of fiendishly fun questions to get you in the mood for all the Halloween celebrations! The quiz is suitable for all ages, just beware, some questions could be ‘tricky!’

Spooky Sensory Storytime
Date: Friday 30 October 2020
Time: 4.00-4.30pm
Who should attend: Children under 16 and their families
Event Details:
Come and join us for a Halloween themed story read by a special spooky guest!

Frighteningly Fangtastic face painting
Date: Saturday 31 October 2020
Time: 11.00-12.00pm
Who should attend: Children under 16 and their families
Event Details:
Come along and learn how to create a Halloween look following our step by step guide using face paints – the best part is, even if it goes wrong it doesn’t matter, the main point of our frightening face painting session is to have fun! It will be a chance for parents to learn some face painting tips…or if you’re brave enough you could let the children practice on you!

Creepy Creatures
Date: Saturday 31 October 2020
Time: 12.00-13.00pm
Who should attend: Children, young people and their families
Event Details:
It wouldn’t be Halloween without some creepy and crawly animals, if you are brave enough join us for this interactive session as Allan from Wee Critters shows and talks to us about some of his slimy, smelly and hairy friends from the animal world!

Shape and Share – Talking to your child about school life
Date: Wednesday 4 November 2020
Time: 20.00-21.00
Who should attend: Parents
Event Details:
While some children love talking about school, others find this difficult. This can be especially tough when a child is having a challenging time at school. This webinar will look at questions you may have but also an overview of some techniques that may be beneficial for supporting your child.
Due to confidentiality, while in the session we will not be discussing individual circumstances however there will be time before the session to pose any questions and support will be available for further in depth discussions with a member of RNIB’s Children, Young People and Families service if needed.

Shape and Share – Disney Singalong
Date: Saturday 14 November 2020
Time: 11.00 – 13.00
Who should attend: Children and young people with complex needs and their families
Event Details:
Now that we are in ‘a whole new world’, come and ‘be our guest’ and ‘let it go’ at our fun Disney themed virtual music session.
We’ll be joined by our very own Disney prince and princess Mr Joe Kenny and Miss Andrea Begley. Joe is a very talented singer and guitar player and has kept people entertained through his lockdown music sessions on social media. Andrea is the NI Ambassador for RNIB, and her beautiful voice earned her the title of winner of The Voice in 2013.

Shape and Share – Employability
Date: Saturday 14 November 2020
Time: 14.00 – 15.30
Who should attend: Young people aged 14-25 years
Event Details:
In this session we will explore some of the common topics and themes that young people – like you – have asked us about employment. Joined by industry professionals who themselves have a vision impairment, along with a representative from RNIB’s Employment Team. we will explore the importance of volunteering and the benefits it can bring to your skillset, confidence and during the application process; Hints and Tips for the Interview and your chance to declare ‘You’re Hired!’ or, in the words of Lord Sugar… ‘You’re Fired!’ during our virtual interview practice session and much more.

Shape and Share – Messy and Muddy
Date: Sunday 15 November 2020
Time: 10.00 – 11.00
Who should attend: Children under 5 and their families
Event Details:
Come and join us for a fun session focussing on the great outdoors. We will be making some resources to enjoy in the garden and taking part in an autumn treasure hunt. A lovely opportunity to meet other children and talk about what you enjoy about getting messy and muddy.

Shape and Share – Managing your own vision impairment
Date: Wednesday 18 November 2020
Time: 19.30 – 21.00
Who should attend: Children aged 11-16 years
Event Details: You will have the opportunity to meet, chat and listen to other young people’s experiences of living with vision impairment. An ophthalmologist will be online to talk about their role, provide the opportunity to ask questions about your sight and to learn about other sight conditions plus the chance to explore avenues of support.

Shape and Share – Yoga
Session 1 Children with a vision Impairment
Date: Saturday 21 November 2020
Time:10.00 – 11.00
Who should attend: Children and young people with a vision impairment
Session 2 Children with complex needs
Date: Saturday 21 November 2020
Time: 14.00 – 15.00
Who should attend: Children and young people with complex needs
Event Details:
Come and join us for some calm and relaxed special yoga therapy sessions. The sessions are delivered by a qualified yoga instructor and will focus on breathing, posture, massage, sound therapy, mindfulness and relaxation.

Shape and Share – Sporting Fun
Date: Saturday 28 November 2020
Time: 16.00 – 17.00
Who should attend: Children aged 6 -12 years and their families
Event Details: Forget the ‘Quiet Please’… It’s time to make a racquet and put your agility, balance, coordination and speed to the ultimate test with Coach Frankie and RNIB’s Children, Young People and Families Team!
Coach Frankie will lead us through a fun-filled, action-packed session using basic household materials and finish with some information and a question and answer session.

Shape and Share – Meet with Santa
Date: Sunday 6 December 2020
Time: 13.00 – 16.00
Who should attend: Children aged 0-12 and their families
Event Details:
RNIB’s Children, Young People and Families team would like to invite you to come and virtually meet with Santa. He will be taking time out of his busy schedule to read us a story, lead us in a sing-along and meet each family to find out who has been naughty or nice. His elves will also be busy beforehand making up a nice little surprise.
There will be four separate sessions available on Sunday 6th December between 1pm and 4pm. The event is open to the whole family

If you would like to receive a message when our face to face events are back up and running or need any help and support from our team please email us at cypf@rnib.org.uk.

You can also call our Helpline on 0303 123 9999 or email helpline@rnib.org.uk.

 

Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid have completed ideal preparations for the wheelchair tennis event at Roland Garros after winning both the men’s singles and doubles titles between them at the French Riviera Open in Biot in the south of France. 

 Hewett beat world No.2 and reigning Roland Garros champion Gustavo Fernandez 6-3, 7-6(6) in Saturday’s men’s singles final at the ITF 1 Series event.  

 On Friday, he also partnered Reid to win the men’s doubles, with Lucy Shuker making it a hat-trick of titles for players on the LTA’s Wheelchair Tennis World Class Programme after she won the women’s doubles title partnering Chile’s Macarena Cabrillana. 

 Hewett made it two wins from three matches on clay against Fernandez as the 22-year-old British No.1 came from 6-4 down in a second set tie-break to win his second singles title of 2020.  

The world No.3, who edged past Reid 7-6(4), 7-6(5) in the semi-finals to end Reid’s own bid for a hat-trick of French Riviera Open singles titles, said: 

 “I didn’t actually expect to come here and win both singles and doubles, so I’m obviously very, very happy right now. I haven’t dropped a set this week, either, so there are a lot of positives I can take going into next week (the French Open).  

 “I think I should be very, very proud of getting a set 6-3 off Gustavo on clay because I’m the only one who’s done that for a long while. He’s very dominant on clay. To win that set as comfortably as I did was quite a surprise. The difference in the second set was a couple of points and I played the points from 6-4 down in the tie-break smartish” 

 With the French Open wheelchair tennis event starting on Wednesday, Hewett added: 

 “We’ve got 24 hours in quarantine when we arrive in Paris, so I think there’ll be a lot of sleep and food to come. I’m just pumped to get there now, but I couldn’t have asked for a better prep.”   

 Hewett and Reid extended their unbeaten 2020 doubles record to 14 matches and six tournaments after beating Belgian second seeds Joachim Gerard and Jef Vandorpe 6-4, 6-0 in the men’s doubles final in Biot to give Reid extra reason to remember his 29th birthday.  

 The reigning Australian Open and US Open champions will now attempt to complete a career Grand Slam of doubles titles together, having also previously won three Wimbledon titles. 

 Reid, already a two-time Roland Garros doubles champion and twice a singles runner-up to Fernandez in Paris, said: 

 “It’s really good preparation for Roland Garros next week. We’ve just come back from the US Open, where we won the title as well. It was a long break away from events since February, but we’ve come back strongly and we’re confident as a team on court. This has been a really good week for us, we’ve played well and we’re really looking forward to next week.    

 “We just have to review this week with our coaches, watch some footage of the matches, see what we did well and what we need to improve on and then just try and continue the success.”  

 While Shuker is not among the four Brits who will be bidding for French Open success in the coming week, the British No.2 put aside the disappointment of  a second round singles loss in Biot to earn victory in the women’s doubles as she and Cabrillana made a winning debut as a partnership. 

  After beating second seeds Katharina Kruger of Germany and Dutchwoman Michaela Spaanstra in a deciding match tie-break in their semi-final, third seeds Shuker and Cabrilllana raced past Japanese fourth seeds Saki Takamuro and Manami Tanaka 6-0, 6-4 in the women’s doubles final. Afer securing her second doubles title of 2020, Shuker said:    

“It was a disappointing singles campaign this week but I’m grateful to Maca for the energy, passion and fun on court to bring home my 75th career doubles title. Through all the ups and downs this year, right now it is definitely about being grateful for the opportunities to compete.” 

 For news and updates from the wheelchair tennis draws and the fortunes of the Brits at the French Open, follow on Twitter @the_LTA and @WChairTennisGB from Monday, 5 October. 

 To find out more about the LTA’s work with disability tennis, head to www.lta.org.uk/play or email disabilitytennis@lta.org.uk. 

Photo credit: Grégory Picout/French Riviera Open

 

The 57th Annual General Meeting of Scottish Disability Sport (SDS) was held on Sunday 27th September and for the first time in the Association’s history, the event was held wholly online. The COVID-19 restrictions meant that instead of gathering face to face in Stirling as usual, attendees logged in on Zoom and Facebook Live to follow proceedings. Almost 80 members, athletes and players, friends and representatives from partner agencies signed in to follow the AGM business and celebrate the successes of athletes, coaches and volunteers during 2019/2020.

The official welcome was delivered by SDS Chair, Catherine Goodfellow who stepped into this position at last year’s AGM following the tragic and untimely passing of previous Chair, Janice Eaglesham MBE. The election of post holders and directors of the Association resulted in the following individuals being elected to post for a 3 year period:

• Chair: Catherine Goodfellow
• Finance Director: Paul Queen
• Directors: Lori Ure, Colette Martin

CEO Gavin Macleod reported to the audience on progress and key successes during 2029/2020 and on the proposed structure for the new SDS strategic plan that will lead the work of the Association from 2021-2029.

The annual SDS Awards to athletes, coaches and volunteers were then conducted. The main award of the afternoon, the Gordon Brown Memorial trophy for the Athlete’s Athlete of the Year, was awarded to tennis player Dominic Iannotti. SDS was also delighted to announce the inaugural awarding of the Janice Eaglesham Trophy for the club of the year to Fife Athletic Club. This award was introduced in memory of formed SDS Chair Janice Eaglesham MBE and generously donated by Caroline Johnstone and Neil’s Wheels.

The afternoon concluded with the closing remarks being delivered by Paralympian David McCrae, all the way from Maryland, USA. David delivered an inspiring and entertaining talk on his involvement with SDS and his journey through life and sport. It was fitting to have such a motivational friend and advocate of SDS as David to bring the 57th AGM to a conclusion.

Click here for a copy of the SDS Annual Report 2019-2020.

Click here for a copy of the slides from the SDS AGM of 2020.

SDS AWARD WINNERS 2020

• Boccia Coach Advance Award: Andrinne Craig, Lewis McConnell, Peter McGuire, Jennifer Barsby
• MOR Reaccreditation: Dumfries & Galloway Disability Sport, Perth & Kinross Disability Sport, South Lanarkshire Disability Sport
• Russell Hogg Bursary: Samantha Gough, Gemma Lumsdaine, Michael Kear
• Special Recognition Award: Dr Elizabeth Ferris
• Special Olympics Trophy: Special Olympics Grampian National Winter Games Organising Committee
• Dedication to Football Award: Willie Pettigrew
• John de Courcy Trophy: Meggan Dawson-Farrell
• Glasgow Trophy: Ian Dunn
• Elspeth Watson Trophy: Robin Walker
• Russell Hogg Trophy: John D’Ambrosio
• Fife Trophy: Jamie Bowie
• Janice Eaglesham Trophy: Fife Athletic Club
• Findlay Calder Trophy: Maria Lyle
• Brian Dolan Memorial Trophy: Toni Shaw
• Angus Trophy: Gordon Reid MBE
• Gordon Brown Memorial Trophy: Dominic Iannotti

Scottish Disability Sport would like to congratulate four Scottish Coaches – Jennifer Barsby, Lewis McConnell, Andrinne Craig and Peter McGuire – on gaining the Boccia Coach Advance Award.

The Coach Advance Award is a blended programme of mentoring and continuous professional development across a range of sport-specific and general coaching modules. The programme is aimed at developing boccia coaches displaying potential and commitment, to take their personal development to the next level. The 15-month programme commenced in April 2019 and involved a group of 12 experienced coaches from across England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The delivery was also supported by a team of experienced boccia coaches, tutors and mentors from across the country. Delegates collaborated with a dedicated mentor and engaged in a number of key workshops including:

• Self Reflection
• Planning
• Developing your skill to develop their skill
• Conditioning and Physical Preparation
• Coaching BC3 Players