Northamptonshire Federation of Disability Sport aims to get more disabled people involved in sport.
The purpose of Northamptonshire Federation of Disability Sport (NFDS) is to create more opportunities for people with disabilities and impairments in the county to participate in sport/physical activity on a regular basis and also remove some of the barriers that may prevent them from doing so.NFDS aims to create partnerships between sport/leisure organisations and those who have a direct link to disabled people through which opportunities to participate can be both organised and communicated.
Why the community needs usNFDS benefits the community by getting more disabled people physically active which reduces their risk of obesity and lifelong illnesses such as type 2 Diabetes.It's also good for their social and psychological wellbeing which reduces their risk of mental health issues all of which takes pressure of the health services.NFDS also upskills the sporting workforce in the county to make them more inclusive of disabled people and reduces wider social discrimination towards disabled people as a result.
Our impact on the communityIn the last 5 years the work of and funding from NFDS has led to over 750 disabled people participating in sport and physical activity. This has been through a combination of projects developed in partnership with local organisations and others that our funding managed by Northants Community Foundation has brought to fruition.
These have ranged from activity have a go days for people with visual impairments to sensory rooms being built at sports facilities to make them better environments for those with complex needs, adapted bikes being bought to make cycling sessions more inclusive, funding of specialist wheelchairs to develop the Saints Wheelchair Rugby team and many more besides.
NFDS has also carried out projects to train activity providers on how to include disabled people in their sessions. These have included generic disability awareness training, Sight Loss and Guide Running courses and other such impairment specific training to make deliverers more confident of including disabled people in their activities.
NFDS have also worked in partnership with Northamptonshire Sport and Screen Northants to produce 5 short films for a project called
See Active Be Active. These featured local disabled people who already enjoy being active in a number of different ways, show them participating in their activities and talking about the many benefits that they've brought to their lives.
All of these projects have helped to get disabled people in Northamptonshire active, inspire others to do so, ensure provision is inclusive and continue the legacy from the 2012 Paralympic Games in London.
