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Leadership
People with Disability

 

Everyone benefits when people with disability participate, and take on leadership roles, in sport.

In Victoria, over 1 million people report living with disability. This represents 1 in every 5 people in the population.

 

What is disability?

Disability is the result of the interaction between people living with impairments (a medical condition that leads to disability) and barriers in the physical, attitudinal, communication and social environment. For example, it is not the inability to walk that keeps a person from entering a building by themselves, but the stairs that are inaccessible that keeps a wheelchair user from entering that building.

Disability results from the interaction of the social and physical environment with a person’s medical condition or bodily function. A disability is any of the following impairments that affects a person’s ability to undertake everyday activities:

  • Physical
  • Sensory
  • Intellectual
  • Cognitive
  • Psychiatric

A disability can occur at any time in life, such as acquired when an adult, at birth or suddenly through accident. Some forms of disability are episodic, some are temporary, and others are long lasting. Some disabilities may be obvious while others are hidden. There are already many people with disabilities playing sport, with varying levels of support needed. The kind of adaptation needed to provide sporting opportunists varies greatly. In some cases, programs are modified so that people can participate (i.e. wheelchair basketball/tennis), in other cases only minor – or zero – changes may be needed for someone with disability to participate.

Through the Are You On Board? campaign Vicsport identified that 58% of people with disability in Victoria participate in physical activity, and just 27% participate in sport related activities (up from 18% in 2012).

Therefore, leaders can play a role in bridging the gap and providing accessible, welcoming environments that allow everyone to participate.

In Victoria there are a range of funding streams and organisations which aim to improve the quality of life for people with disability. This includes multiple State Sport & Recreation Bodies dedicated to supporting people with disabilities.

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) provides support for many people with disability to access community support services and activities to achieve their individual goals. The NDIS provides support via disability service providers which are non-government organisations that work with both government and non-government partners to support and enhance the lives of people with disability.

Increasing participation in sport by people with disability benefits both the individuals and the organisations. During the State Sporting Association Participation Program, organisations working with people with disability reported some of the following benefits:

  • An increase in overall participation numbers.
  • A positive change in staff towards advocating for and welcoming people with disability.
  • New partnerships benefiting the organisation by providing additional resources and new channels.
  • Stronger connections with clubs and more inclusive grassroots sport environments.

As detailed by this Australian Sport Commission report about people with disability taking part in sport, the benefits of sporting participation to people with disability include:

  • A sense of achievement.
  • Doing something stimulating.
  • Improved health outcomes.
  • Opportunities to socialise with others.
  • Enjoying the company of friends.
  • Increased energy levels.
  • Improved self-esteem.

These benefits are consistent with the benefits that any person can receive by participating in sport and active recreation.

Sport organisations, including both State Sporting Associations and clubs, can positively impact the lives of people with disability.

Doing this requires strong leadership and an actively inclusive culture, from the board or committee right down to the grassroots. Leaders set the strategy and culture of organisations, so it is important that they understand the value of inclusive sport. Vicsport asked senior leaders about their approach to leadership for the Are You On Board? campaign.

Gymnastics Victoria was involved in the State Sporting Association Participation Program and as an organisation displayed notable leadership in breaking down the barriers to participation for people with disability. This video demonstrates the impact they have had and the benefits of gymnastics to people with disability.

 

 Creating a Culture Change 

Creating a cultural change is so important as it enables leaders right across the organisation to develop skills, set expectations about appropriate behavior and ensure all participants in the sport (including volunteers and officials) understand the role they have in contributing to a welcoming and inclusive environment. People with disability contribute to many sport organisations in leadership roles. You might consider finding people within your own organisation who have leadership skills that could be supported.

Supporting Leaders

Identifying leaders and people of influence, including board members, staff, volunteers, coaches, officials and club members, to be champions of change is vital to becoming an inclusive sport. Leaders will help define and influence your sport’s culture. They might require practical training to improve their knowledge, skills and capacity to change their own and others’ behaviors and practices to support inclusion. There are several ways you can support leaders to give them the necessary skills and knowledge to drive cultural change:

  • Disability awareness training is a useful activity for current and future leaders, to support them to think about disability in new ways; and increase their awareness, understanding and confidence. Training can be useful to provide sport organisations a greater level of awareness of the abilities of people with disability, learn about inclusive communication and take away practical tips and principles to apply across their organisation. Click here for a resource from the State Government of Victoria which provides more information about Disability Awareness Training (insert PDF document ‘Disability Awareness Training’).
  • Inclusive procedures. It is important for leaders of sport organisations to ensure their policies and procedures support and promote accessibility for people with disability. For example, website communications might be provided in a range of formats to ensure people with hearing or vision impairments can access the information. Click here for a resource from the State Government of Victoria which provides more information about inclusive procedures (insert PDF document ‘Disability Awareness Training’).
  • Consult people with disability. It is important for leaders to understand the value of consulting with people with disability. A fundamental principle of inclusive sport is that people with disability should have input into the planning and development of any strategies, policies or participation opportunities that impact them. Leaders should drive consultation and ensure the necessary staff or volunteers are consulting the right people. Click here for a resource from the State Government of Victoria which provides more information about consulting with people with disability (insert PDF document ‘Disability Awareness Training’).
  • Communication. Not every person with a disability requires tailored communication, yet for those who do, it helps if leaders understand acceptable forms of communication and language so that they can set the expectations within their organisation. Language is important, and everyone from the board / committee level right down to coaches, volunteers and officials will benefit from understanding what kind of language is appropriate to use in certain contexts. Click here for a resource from the State Government of Victoria which provides more information about communicating with people with disability (insert PDF document ‘Communicating with People with disability’

Effective Strategy Leadership

A successful approach to increasing participation in sport of people with disability starts with strategy. This means having an effective board or committee who know how to lead the change. It also means embedding inclusion in strategic and operational plans so that inclusion becomes part of your organisations core business. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

There are several ways your organisation can strengthen your strategic approach to inclusion. These include:

  • Board / committee level advocates. During the State Sporting Association Participation Program, Gymnastics Victoria appointed a disability advocate to their board. In doing this, GV received relevant advice and information about people with disability during board discussions, enabling them to create a more effective strategy to engage people with disability in gymnastics.
  • Board / committee training. You could engage an organisation who specialise in supporting people with disability to deliver a training session to your board or committee. Doing this can help educate leaders about the opportunities available to your sport and understand specific barriers to participation which you can then aim to break down. Different organisations which support people with disability can provide specific training programs like deaf awareness training or blindness disability awareness.
  • Use evidence. It is important to use evidence and data when discussing opportunities for your organisation to increase participation in your sport. You can consider some of the following points:
    • What will be the financial benefits to our organisation (through increased funding and membership)?
    • What will be the cultural benefits to our organisation (creating welcoming and inclusive environments can benefit everyone in the organisation, building capability and positive attitudes in current staff, volunteers and participants)?
    • How has this benefited other sport organisations? You can highlight the success of other State Sporting Associations or clubs to demonstrate what your organisation can reasonably achieve.
  • Talk about disability inclusion. Leaders can publicise their strategic commitment to inclusion by talking about how people with disability are involved in their sport at forums, meetings or in conversations with other leaders. Doing this helps to promote an environment where including people with disability is considered ‘core business’ for sport organisations.
  • Create a disability action plan. A Disability Action Plan (DAP) is a list of actions an organisation puts together to help achieve better outcomes for people with disability in relation to the services and facilities provided by the organisation. DAPs can be as detailed as a comprehensive document or as simple as a one-page list of actions. For most sport organisations including State Sporting Associations and clubs, a DAP might be a 1-2 page document. You can read more about the benefits of a DAP in this guide from the Office for Disability – What is a Disability Action Plan? (insert PDF ‘what is a disability action plan’).
 

More Training and support Information

If you would like more information about supporting leaders to make your organisation more inclusive visit:

With over 1 million Victorians living with a reported disability there is clear opportunity to increase the number of people with disability active in the sports industry as leaders, employees and volunteers.

Many people with disability already operate as effective leaders in sport settings. The opportunity available is to understand the benefits to your organisation, which include:

  • A better understanding of your target audience because leaders have a lived experience which relates to the community.
  • More effective communications because leaders with disability will understand how people with similar disabilities want to communicate.
  • An understanding of the abilities of potential participants which helps you build on the existing strengths of your local community as you create unique participation opportunities.

Case Study – Molly Urquhart-Moran

Molly is a leader in both performance and administration. She has played for the Pearls – the national Basketball team for females with an intellectual disability – and worked at Basketball Victoria as a Disability Inclusion Assistant. Read more about her story here.

Case study – Maurice Gleeson

Maurice Gleeson OAM is the President of Blind Sports Victoria. For over 20 years his strong and passionate leadership has enabled greater participation in sport and recreation by people who are blind or have a vision impairment. Read more about his story here.

 

Recruitment and Retention 

It is important to provide all applicants for paid or volunteer roles with equal opportunities in gaining employment, promotion, training and development.

Key areas to address when recruiting and retaining people with disability include:

  • Position descriptions and essential requirements of the job.
  • Advertising vacancies.
  • The interview.
  • The job offer.
  • Reasonable adjustment.
  • Staff training and development.
  • Mentoring.
  • Career planning.
  • National Disability Services – Disability Employment
  • Leadership Victoria – Disability Leadership Program

For more information on how to approach these steps, read the Office for Disability resource Inclusive Recruitment and Retention Practices (upload PDF resource ‘Inclusive Recruitment and Retention Practices’). If you would like to learn more about your responsibilities as an employer under the Equal Opportunity Act 2010, including examples of discrimination in employment, click here to visit the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission.

 

Role Models 

Over 200,000 Victorians with a disability play sport, and many of these people have achieved great things as athletes and administrators. Your organisation can share the stories of people with disability who play sport, at both the local level and elite level. You should consider the specific communities you are targeting. For example, if you are working with wheelchair athletes, think about role models you can promote who have excelled in wheelchair sports. If you are working with people with hearing impairments, try to find a role model with a similar background and share their story. Sport Inclusion Australia is part of the International Federation for Athletes with Intellectual Impairments (INAS) #WeAreSport program which helps raise the profile of female athletes with an intellectual disability so they can be role models for the next generation. Read more here.

 

Dylan Alcott is an elite tennis player and basketballer and is a Paralympian in both sports. He has become prominent in mainstream media. During this Tedx Talk he speaks about his experience growing up with disability.

Carol Cooke is a prominent cyclist who lives with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Hear more about her story in this podcast:

 

More Information 

For more information about disability employment and potential partner organisations, visit: