Policies and Practice
People with a Disability

It is important that your sport organisation develops a culture and environment that welcomes, values, and respects people with disability. There are many actions your organisation can take to increase participation in your sport. Policies should also detail how your organisation will make your sport accessible to people with disability.

Creating a Mission Statement

Your organisation should have a mission statement which explains why you exist. Many sport organisations are now referencing inclusion in their overall mission statement. For example, Cricket Australia has their values outlined here while Netball Victoria have theirs displayed within their Strategic Plan here.

Many sport organisations that are working with people with disability are also working to open up their sport to previously under-represented population groups, which includes people from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse backgrounds, women and girls, LGBTIQ communities, older adults and Aboriginal Victorians.

Therefore, Vicsport recommends that your vision or mission statement reflects a commitment to include everyone in your sport. This commitment should be reflected across:

• Your strategic plan.
• Business and marketing plans.
• Your website and social media communications.

If your organisation would like to reference your commitment to people with disability you could consider adding it as a strategic pillar or objective to a strategic plan or create a statement to display on your website or in the club rooms.

• Example 1: (sport organisation) is committed to creating healthy sporting environments that are safe, accessible, inclusive and equitable. This commitment involves a focused approach to actively encourage and support the participation of people with disability in all aspects of our sport.
• Example 2: (sport organisation) aims to provide an opportunity for everyone to participate in (sport) regardless of their ability. The (sport organisation) will strive to provide a healthy, safe, inclusive and accessible environment to ensure all people can fully participate in any aspect of the (sport). This participation includes playing, coaching, officiating, administering and supporting (sport) in a paid or voluntary capacity.

You might include measurable objectives in your strategic plan, so that you have a target to work towards. For example:

• (sport organisation) will increase participation by people with disability by 5% in (insert program or competition and year).
• (sport organisation) will increase the number of coaches with disability by 2% in (insert year).

Supporting acceptable attitudes and behaviors 

Clear boundaries need to be set around acceptable attitudes and behaviours. A successful sport rejects discrimination, harassment and bullying towards everyone.

Codes of conduct and other policies addressing inappropriate behaviour and unfair decision making must be in place, communicated and enforced by leaders throughout the organisation. In Victoria, it is against the law to discriminate against someone based on disability.

Preventing Discrimination 

Your organisation should be aware that it is unlawful to discriminate against people with disability and their associates in various areas of life, including employment and sport. If you would like to learn more, the Australian Human Rights Commission provides an overview of the Disability Discrimination Act here. If you would like to read the act you can find it here.

Child Safe Standards

 A very important area of consideration when developing policy is the Victorian Government’s Child Safe Standards. Victorian legislation mandates that organisations which provide services and facilities for children under the age of 18 must comply with 7 standards to create child safe environments. The act says that organisations should consider specific actions to support the safety of children with disability, as the ‘Betrayal of Trust’  inquiry found they are at higher risk than children without disability. Vicsport has a range of resources to support your organisation to meet the Child Safe Standards. Click here for more information.

Taking Practical Steps 

There are many practical steps your organisation can take to ensure you create a positive culture and environment for people with disability:

• Talk to people with disability. It is important to speak to people so that you understand how you can best support any needs they may have. It also means you are making decisions with them which impact how they participate in your sport. It also allows you to understand their strengths and unique abilities, thereby allowing your organisation to strengthen your capacity to offer products, services and facilities that meet their needs.
• Communication and language. Ensure your organisation promotes both acceptable forms of language and accessible forms of communication. This helps to create an inclusive environment for people with disability. 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’).
• Provide and share information. Provide tailored information to participants, coaches and clubs so that each group is aware of the opportunities your organisation is providing.
• Review policies and procedures. Review your constitution, membership rules and policies to remove discriminatory clauses or unfair language and protect the rights and representations of your members, regardless of their ability.
• Facilities. Ensure your facilities, including your office building, are accessible for people with disability. Sport and Recreation Victoria has some useful resources, including their Design For Everyone Guide.
• Role sharing. Consider role sharing opportunities if that helps to eliminate the barriers for some people to volunteer or work for your organisation.
• Be understanding. Inappropriate language or other forms of discrimination may be accidental. Remember that people need to be educated about inclusion practices and behaviours, and this may take time for your organisation’s leaders to embed in your culture.

Sporting organisations develop policies to communicate appropriate behaviour, protect the rights of members and visitors and set expectations around standards of behaviour. To ensure your policies include the needs of people with disability you should talk to members, participants and disability advocacy groups. By taking a user-centred approach your policies will be more relevant to the needs of people with disability.

If you would like external support to develop your policies you can speak to your affiliated State Sporting Association, a Regional Sport Assembly or a State Sport & Recreation Body (such as Disability Sport and Recreation).

There are several resources which VicHealth promoted during the State Sporting Association Participation Program that are useful for policy development:

• How to consult people with disability
• Communicating with people with disability
• Disability inclusive purchasing policies
• Accessible complaints procedures
• Accessible formats
• Inclusive recruitment and retention practices

Policy Development 

How to develop your policy

Vicsport recommends sport organisations take the following steps through the development of their guidelines and policies. Each is explored in more detail further in this document:

• Consult widely
• Write the policy
• Circulate the draft policy for feedback
• Finalise and approve the policy
• Communicate the policy
• Set a date for review

A clear and well-planned process will ensure that your organisation develops a thorough policy that contributes to a strong and vibrant culture at your organisation.

Policy Development Step 1: Consult widely

Engage with a broad cross-section of individuals, including people with disability, involved in your organisation. This may include committee members, volunteers, players, and parents. It may also include your local council, a disability service provider or your respective State Sporting Association. Consultation provides an opportunity for people involved in your club to become aware of the issues you are trying to address. An additional benefit of consultation is increased ownership of the policy as members feel they have contributed to positive change in the club. For policies relating to children (such as child safety and protection), it is important to also involve members aged under 18 in the consultation process.

Step 2: Write the policy

When writing a policy, you should consider:

The impact or change you want to achieve and the input and feedback you received during step 1.

How this policy may link with any policies in place or being developed by your State Sporting Association or sporting organisation. Are the key areas of the policy consistent with any existing policies? You may consider using existing policies as a template for the new policy draft.

Step 3: Circulate the draft policy for feedback

When you have finalised the policy, circulate a copy to members for feedback. Where possible, seek feedback from your State Sporting Association or other organisations. You could also consider approaching other local sport clubs, or clubs in your league or association, to find out if they have similar policies in place. Usually, sporting organisations are willing to share resources.

Step 4: Finalise and approve the policy

Collate the feedback gained through the review process and update your policy draft. Once your policy has been finalised, you will need to identify who is required to approve it (committee or members). This should be outlined in your club’s constitution. Any approval that occurs at committee or member meetings should be minuted and recorded for future reference.

Step 5: Communicate the Policy

Once approved, communicate your new policy throughout your club on an ongoing basis. You may consider doing this through:

• Website
• Social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, Sport/Team Apps).
• Newsletters (hard copy and emailed).
• Direct emails to your members.
• Displaying throughout clubrooms.

Step 6: Set a Date for Review

Once your policy is finalised and communicated to your members, set a date for the policy to be reviewed every two years and ensure it is updated accordingly.

Policy Examples

• Surf Life Saving Australia's Inclusion Policy
• Netball Australia's Inclusion Policy
• Gymnastics Australia's Inclusion Policy
• AFL's national vilification and discrimination policy
• Nunawading Swimming Club's Inclusion Policy
• The Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission is a great resource for more information. It also has a complaints hotline.
• Your State Sporting Association and National Sporting Organisation’s member protection policy will outline the processes for dealing with complaints and issues in your sport.
• Play by the Rules is a great resource for sport organisations. They have a range of resources, templates and online modules to help your organisation be more inclusive.

There are many great examples of inclusion policies in Victorian sport:

Click here to access a great disability inclusion policy template from Play by the Rules.

Disability Action Plans 

Disability Action Plan Checklist

Sport organisations should consider the following areas when developing a DAP:

Governance

• Does your board / committee have a person with disability or someone who can advocate for people with disability?
• Does your strategic plan reference disability, or do you have a publicly available statement of commitment to inclusion?
• Do your codes of conduct, constitution and policies reference people with disability?
• Has your board / committee taken part in disability awareness training?

Workforce (including volunteers)

• Is there a diversity in your staff or volunteers, including people with disability?
• Do you provide disability awareness training or other forms of education to staff or volunteers?
• Do your staff or volunteers feel confident to respond to enquiries from people with disability?
• Is your office or clubhouse accessible to people with disability?

Programs and Accessibility

• Do you use feedback from people with disability to design or modify your programs?
• Do you offer modified, flexible and/or social formats of your sport?
• Can you offer variations in the cost and location of programs?
• Do you conduct programs away from traditional venues?
• Do you offer pathways for people with disability to support on-going participation?
• Do you have partnerships in place to support your initiatives?

Communication

• Does your promotional imagery reflect people with disability?
• Is your website accessible to people with disability?
• Do you provide communication material in a range of formats to cater for a diverse range of needs including people with intellectual disabilities, vision impairments, hearing impairments?
• Do you document success stories and share them with your members and stakeholders?

Evaluation

• Do you track the number people with disability who participate at your club or association?
• Do you ask for specific feedback from people with a disability?[/collapse]

Disability Action Plan Template

Your action plan should include a list of strategic aims, actions to achieve those, resources required, the person(s) responsible and the timeline for completion. You can click here to download a template action plan (insert word document ‘Disability Action Plan for SSAPP Legacy). Your organisation might choose to publicise your action plan and include your statement of commitment to the inclusion of people with disability.