Sports Development Disabilities

Mission Statement

Manx Sport and Recreation is committed to ensuring that all people with a disability, their families, carers and organisation, have access to fully inclusive sport and recreation opportunities to improve an individual's quality of life and social wellbeing.

Objectives

Environment

To develop and enhance the inclusion of disabled people in community based sport and physical activity opportunities.

• To support key partners to increase sustainable and accessible sport and physical activity for disabled people.

Sport

To develop sporting pathways for disabled people

• Ensure that the pathways and opportunities that exist for disabled people in sport are identified.
• Ensure that National Governing Bodies programmes and products are inclusive.
• Ensure that competitive opportunities for disabled sports people are available.
• Ensure that talented disabled sports people are identified and their development supported.

Training

To improve skills, knowledge and understanding of the community to effectively deliver sport for the disabled.

• To source, provide and/or design high quality training to satisfy current and evolving training needs identified within the structure of the Isle of Man Sports Development programme.

Empowerment

To empower disabled people to take a full and active role within sport.

• To increase the number of disabled people with the skills, knowledge and opportunities to take a full and active role within any aspect of the sport/physical activity industry.

Education

To improve the quality and quantity of PE and school sport for young disabled people in special and mainstream education.

• To work closely with those delivering PE and school sport.
• Ensure that young disabled people have access to extra curricular sporting opportunities.
• Ensure that disabled people have improved access to formal qualifications in sport and leisure.
• Ensure that disabled people have improved access to work placements in the sport and leisure industry.

Media

To increase awareness and understanding of sport for disabled people.

• Raise the profile of sport, physical education and healthy activities for disabled people in the Isle of Man.
• To pro actively lobby key partners to ensure that disabled peoples sport and physical needs are met.

Key Areas of Work

1. To collect data of persons with disabilities on the island and assess the current participation levels in sport and recreation.
2. To establish and co-ordinate a long-term development plan for the delivery of sports for disabled people.
3. Identify the barriers to disabled people becoming sports participants and coaches and develop innovative solutions.
4. Support the voluntary sector to develop sustainable sporting pathways for disabled people to a level of their choosing and ability.
5. To formulate and deliver, either directly or through partners (such as coaches, sports bodies/clubs) a wide range of sports development services and sports opportunities for disabled persons.
6. To liaise with facility managers at the National Sports Centre in order to ensure effective adaptation/utilisation of the facilities for disabled groups and individuals.
7. To ensure that all sports schemes, programmes and facility operations under the control of the SDU are undertaken in compliance with established policy, statutory provisions and industry good practice; with a particular emphasis on ensuring health and safety. In relationship to partnership schemes under the control of external agencies; ensuring that the Department is only associated with services meeting those standards.
8. To liaise with the Isle of Man Sports Council and the Governing Bodies of Sport to assist in the formation of programmes for disabled persons.
9. To liaise with both primary and secondary schools to enable children and young persons with disabilities to participate in sport.
10. Work closely with Governing Bodies to assist in addressing the issues of recruitment and training of coaches.