Special Olympics Great Britain is delighted to be named as one of three disability charities, which are the latest to have secured new Sport England System Partnership funding.

Special Olympics GB is being awarded £1.5 million over four years. This Sport England funding is in recognition of the organisation’s plans to create and sustain more inclusive sport and physical activity opportunities across England, whilst also working for system-wide change. Fellow disability charities Sense and Mencap have also been awarded System Partnership funding.

Laura Baxter, Strategic Director of Growth & Legacy at Special Olympics GB: “At the grassroots of Special Olympics GB, we have some great clubs that are run by an incredible team of volunteers. We’re very much aware that we need to provide more support if we are to enhance our sporting opportunities for children and adults with intellectual disabilities.

“Sport England’s funding can help us achieve this by building the structure that we need for our existing clubs to thrive whilst also developing our work across many more areas of the country.”

Unveiled in June  2021, the Special Olympics GB strategic plan was launched with four principal objectives:

  • Stronger Infrastructure
  • Grow Participation
  • Raise Awareness
  • Generate more income

The Sport England funding will focus primarily on the first two objectives and enable Special Olympics GB to work towards its 2024 goal of bolstering its network and, ultimately, increasing the number of opportunities for existing and new athletes. Underpinning this, Special Olympics GB also aims to expand its volunteer base and establish more accredited programmes across England, Scotland and Wales.

Tim Hollingsworth, Chief Executive of Sport England and the Government’s Disability and Access Ambassador for Sport and Physical Activity, said: “The pandemic disproportionately affected disabled people and now the cost of living brings new and difficult challenges. Our strategy Uniting the Movement aims to help everyone play sport and get active – no matter who they are, where they live, or what their background is. But disabled people are still far less likely to be active than other groups, and this is an inequality that we are working hard to address.

“We are proud to partner with these three incredible charities that actively promote sport and physical activity for disabled people, in what has been a notable year for disability sport. These partners will help disabled people who may have previously felt unable to take part in physical activity to get involved.”

Colin Dyer, Chief Executive at Special Olympics GB, said: “Sport England’s support and our place as a System Partner will be transformational to the lives of children and adults with intellectual disabilities.

“It will enable Special Olympics GB to deliver on the pledges of our strategic plan, to significantly enhance our grassroots network, to increase the number of Special Olympics GB programmes taking place across the country, and to expand our fantastic team of committed volunteers. In turn, this will create many more opportunities for children and adults with intellectual disabilities to participate and compete, and therefore, benefit from the positive impacts that are only made possible through the power of sport.

“We’re very grateful for the support of Sport England and are very excited to work alongside our partners to make a difference to so many lives.”

Special Olympics GB, alongside Sense and Mencap, are part of Sport England’s new approach to long-term partnerships, which launched earlier this year. This new Sport England funding model is designed to provide the financial security needed for partners to deliver its Uniting the Movement strategy, which is helping to transform lives and communities through sport and physical activity.

Sport England has invested over £16 million into system partners that support access to sport and physical activity for disabled people to ensure everyone has the opportunity to be active.

Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work, Tom Pursglove MP, said: “It is fantastic to see Sport England making this significant commitment to disabled people through their new partnerships which will help give everyone the opportunity to be active.

“Incorporating sport and activity into people’s everyday lives builds life skills, confidence and ultimately improves physical and mental health. Ensuring disabled people have the same opportunities to participate in, and enjoy, sport as everyone else is so important and that’s why I am delighted to see Sport England helping tackle inequalities in sport.”