Category: A News

Reason to be cheerful for Disability Sport Fife

To day I am delighted to report that we now have over 6,000 Facebook followers. Prior to lock down the 2020 Annual Awards and AGM of DSF (SCIO) was set for Monday 27th April. Not surprisingly it has been postponed but I had set a target of trying to attract 6,000 followers by the date of the AGM. Thanks to your support and feedback we have hit the target and I thank you most sincerely for your loyalty. We are still pursuing 6,000 “likes” but we require another 100 visitors to click the “like” button before we can have a double celebration.

I am pleased that we are followed by visitors from all over the world. It is particularly pleasing when participants, support staff and volunteers who have moved on return to pass comment on a particular article. To days article on the 2009 Games has brought a lot of retired Fife Council staff, athletes and volunteers back in touch. Facebook is the main communication platform for Disability Sport Fife and during lock down it has become even more influential and important.

My mission is to try and keep the Facebook page fresh. More recently I have been featuring junior members, DSF coaches, DSF volunteers and great occasions from the past that have influenced our movement. I obviously report news and highlight ways in which our members are active at home. I share news and activities from other areas and organisations and highlight opportunities for our participants and volunteers to be active at home. Fife Sports and Leisure Trust gym staff and others have been particularly active along with DSF coach Pamela Robson plus son Olly. Pamela is also providing zoom sessions for our younger members. It is hugely important that our members and friends try to remain active at home during lock down.

Once again thank you for your support. Please share details about our page with your friends and families. If you can afford the time there is a section on the page that offers you the opportunity for feedback. Stay home and stay safe. The family will be together again soon.

Richard Brickley OBE MBE Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustees

Para badminton role model retains Fife title

Mary Wilson lives in Edinburgh but for a period lived in Fife and during that time she became member of Disability Sport Fife. Mary has never lost her affection for DSF and over the years has competed in the Fife Track and Field Championships, Fife Lawn Bowls Championships, Fife Swimming Championships and Fife Badminton Championships.

Mary is an all rounder but her first love is Para badminton and over the past five years or so she has committed fully to trying to secure a place in Team GB for the Paralympic Games in Tokyo. Mary has travelled extensively to international Para badminton events to gain experience and ranking points. Mary has fund raised vigorously to enable this to happen and I am sure would be the first to say thank you to the many individuals and organisations that have helped her along the way.

Disability Sport Fife considers Mary a perfect role model for women’s sport and consequently values her presence at any event she is available to enter. Her positive influence on DSF members on the court or field of play is of the highest order. Not only is Mary an exceptional sportswoman but the manner in which she conducts herself rubs off on all our other sportswomen in particular.

Mary is captured in this photo receiving the Fife Ladies Open badminton trophy from guest of honour Julie Hogg, at the 2020 Fife Badminton Championships held at Kirkcaldy Leisure Centre.

Richard Brickley OBE MBE Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustees

Congratulations to GASC coach

Disability Sport Fife was pleased to see retired Fife Council teacher Helen McKay being recognised for her volunteering work as a teacher and coach with Glenrothes Amateur Swimming Club.

The occasion was the Kirkcaldy & Central Fife Sports Council annual awards at Fife College earlier in the year. Helen is a very popular and highly valued member of the GASC team and it came as no surprise she was recognised on the night. Helen is inclusive in ethos and practice and DSF members who are members of GASC have benefitted from her support and experience.

There was a period when Helen was part of the Disability Sport Fife swim coaching team offering support for adult improvers at Cupar Swimming Pool. Responsibilities with GASC increased and understandably Helen had to leave the DSF team but her influence at the time was very significant.

I captured Helen on the night in this photo with Paul Noble MBE, Treasurer and Trustee of Disability Sport Fife (SCIO). Congratulations Helen.

Richard Brickley OBE MBE Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustees

Fife AC a very special DSF partner club

Disability Sport Fife enjoys special relationships with mainstream sports clubs across Fife. There are partners that have been with us since DSF was established back in 1977 and one of those is Fife Athletic Club.

The attached photo is of the officials who turned out in significant numbers to support the third leg of the four rounds of the East Series Cross Country organised by Scottish Athletics and Scottish Disability Sport. The third leg is organised in Fife on behalf of SA and SDS by Disability Sport Fife and Fife AC. The organisers are also indebted to Kirkcaldy Rugby Club and Fife Council for facility support.

Steve Doig is the Fife AC contact for the two cross country events organised in Fife for athletes with additional support needs. The Fife Championships are scheduled for May but have been postponed. The Fife leg of the East Series was the only one to go ahead because of inclement weather. DSF was delighted with the turn out at the East Series event and with the GOGA in Fife walk in the park supported by Spirit of 2012 which has become a feature of cross country events in Fife.

Richard Brickley OBE MBE Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustees

Beveridge Park BC refurbishment making great progress

Last week I posted an article about progress with the refurbishment of the Beveridge Park Bowling Club. Some more photos have been brought to my attention that offer a clearer picture of the significant changes that will be offered for bowlers with mobility difficulties. The club is looking really good already.

Committee members have been unbelievably active and successful in securing grants and financial support for the project and the end product will be very special. Improved access for bowlers with mobility difficulties has been a major consideration in their planning.

Andy Mathieson from the club is a most valued Disability Sport Fife multi sports volunteer and he has kindly kept us up to date on progress. Math Thomson has been the DSF bowls coordinator for many years and he ensures we always have enough markers for all DSF tournaments and championships.

The Beveridge Park Bowling Club members have hosted the DSF Lawn Bowls Championships for almost 30 years and provided officials for DSF indoor, lawn and carpet bowls championships for the same period. The club also hosted the Bowls Test match between Scotland and England in 2009. DSF considers the club one of its longest serving partners.

Richard Brickley OBE MBE Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustee

SDS Welcomes Phillippa MacDonald

SDS is delighted to welcome Phillippa MacDonald to the SDS team in her new post as Tayside Get Out Get Active (GOGA) Manager. Phillippa lives in Dundee, and joins SDS from her previous role as Health & Wellbeing Worker within NHS Tayside. She has also previously worked for Barnardo’s and Dundee City Council.

Phillippa will drive forward the GOGA Tayside health based programme that supports disabled and non-disabled people to enjoy being active together. The Spirit of 2012 and London Marathon Charitable Trust funded programme is being run in close partnership with NHS Tayside and will work through encouraging and supporting the very least active disabled and non-disabled people to be active together. Support will also be available enhance physical recreation opportunities and to provide training for key volunteers and staff.

We all wish Phillippa every success in her new position and look forward to the roll out of the GOGA programme across Tayside.

A very special Disability Sport Fife Partnership

Disability Sport Fife (DSF) enjoys a special relationship with the staff and pupils of Kirkcaldy High School. For 10 years the Disability Sport Fife 7s League for players with additional support needs has been held at Kirkcaldy HS. This year the programme is supported by the Scottish FA and the 2020 Series of three included S1/S2 and S3 – S6 competitions.

Throughout 2019/2020, Kirkcaldy HS Sports Leaders were involved as officials at the Disability Sport Fife badminton, swimming and track and field championships. All these events offer the young sports leaders invaluable sporting experiences with participants and performers with additional support needs.

At the 2020 DSF Swimming Championships supported by Fife Sports and Leisure Trust at the Michael Woods Sports & Leisure Centre, 20 sports leaders supported Scottish Swimming Officials on poolside as event timekeepers. Glenrothes Amateur Swimming Club is a key partner. Once again the Championships ran smoothly primarily thanks to the quality of the officiating. The quality of Sports Leadership training provided within Kirkcaldy HS prepares the young leaders perfectly for the DSF programme of events.

DSF is indebted to Rector Derek Allan and Principal Teacher of PE Malcolm Stewart for support since year one of the partnership and to Active Schools coordinator Robert Greenhorn for facilitating the attendance of the young leaders.

Photos: sports leaders over the years

Richard Brickley OBE MBE – Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustees

Another young DSF member active at home

Dale Lynch from Glenrothes is another young Disability Sport Fife member active at home.

Dale was inspired to join DSF through the GOGA in Fife programme supported by Spirit of 2012. Initially Dale signed up for run, jump and throws but more recently he has added swimming improvers, multi sports, football and badminton.

Dale is missing all his sessions during lock down at the Michael Woods Sports and Leisure Centre. Like so many other DSF members Dale is missing all the new friends he has made over the last couple of years at the Michael Woods Sports and Leisure Centre in particular.

As well as sports Dale loves his music and has been a successful DJ at a number of well attended local events.

Richard Brickley OBE MBE Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustees

10K Coaching2020 reaches target

The Disability Sport Fife weekly sessions organised throughout the year in conjunction with Fife Sports and Leisure Trust and Fife Sports clubs are the foundations of our movement. They are the entry point for athletes who have aspirations of accessing active recreation only. Sessions are also the initial steps on the Para sport pathway that may lead to membership of a mainstream sports club or representing Fife at Scottish Championships and who knows what thereafter.

When families or significant others contact the Disability Sport Fife office, they are sent a registration form and when this is completed and returned, a face to face meeting or telephone conversation is arranged to determine the most appropriate session on the timetable. So many of our Fife representative athletes attend weekly sessions within their local communities or have attended for a short period before signing up for a mainstream club.

The Disability Sport Fife programme of sessions has been running for almost a decade. Every session is led by a DSF coach who holds appropriate coaching qualifications for the sessions they lead and this includes safeguarding and first aid. All our sessions are held in Fife Sports and Leisure Trust facilities and offer access to the FSLT Leisure Active programme and reduced prices. Most importantly sessions are located in the best leisure facilities in Fife and offer security, comfort and community engagement. DSF sessions are inclusive in ethos and practice.

It costs Disability Sport Fife between 10K and 11k to run the programme of sessions annually thanks to the partnership set up with Fife Sports and Leisure Trust. For the past three years GOGA in Fife supported by Spirit of 2012 has helped to fund the programme but the funding stopped in December 2019. As part of succession planning, GOGA in Fife and the Trustees of DSF (SCIO) set up a fund raising programme called 10KCoaching 2020 to support the costs of running DSF sessions post GOGA.

The Trustees are delighted to report that by the start of the new financial year on April 1st we had raised 9.5K and this has ensured that sessions will be funded until the end of March 2021. The Trustees of DSF (SCIO) are indebted to the following individuals and organisations for their incredible support:

STV Children’s Appeal

Trefoil

Celtic Foundation

The family of the late Craig Bernard

Specific families who donated anonymously

The Association of Fife Rotary Clubs

Donations offered to DSF speakers at clubs and organisations

Scottish Disability Sport

Thank you to everybody who has helped to fundraise for DSF throughout the year. The 10K Coaching2021 fund has now been set up to meet the costs of our programme of sessions for the period 2021/2022.

Richard Brickley OBE MBE Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustees

Goalball Opportunities in Edinburgh

Lothian Disability Sport (LDS), Edinburgh Active Schools and dedicated parents from Blackhall Primary School have been working together to establish a Goalball session in the West of Edinburgh. This session began earlier this year, targeting primary pupils from the Blackhall area however is welcome to any primary school aged young people from across Edinburgh and across East of Scotland.

This session has been supported by Goalball UK and Scottish Disability Sport (SDS), however driven by a couple of enthusiastic volunteers who secured funding to develop the activity. The parent volunteers also recently completed a coaching qualification in the sport allowing them to deliver structured sessions to all attendees. The sessions at Blackhall PS have also been supported by upcoming star in the sport, Samantha Gough.

Currently, there are no other Goalball opportunities across the East of Scotland and LDS, in partnership with partners including Goalball UK and SDS, are aiming to establish a regular session for individuals of all ages looking to participate in the sport. Ideally, the session at Blackhall would lay the foundations for a regular opportunity in Edinburgh with the overall aim of developing a sustainable club.

Goalball, is an exciting Paralympic, indoor 3-a-side sport of attack and defend which is played by people who are blind or partially sighted. All players are required to wear eye shades so that nobody can see anything and ensures an even playing field for all. The idea of the game is quite simply to score goals by bowling the ball along the floor, past the opposing team. The ball has a bell in it, meaning players must rely on their other senses. To find out more about the sport, please visit www.goalballuk.com.

If you are interested in becoming involved with Goalball, please contact SDS Regional Manager (East) Neal Herbert on 0131 317 1130 or neal.herbert@scottishdisabilitysport.com.