Author: halifaxwheelchairrugbyleague

Rugby league fans will be able to roll back the years and reconnect with treasured memories, thanks to a unique Reminiscence Dice Game created by Community Integrated Care in collaboration with our partners Age Exchange and the Rugby League World Cup 2021. This incredible free resource is available to download now – click here for your free copy.  

The RLWC2021 Reminiscence Dice Game has been purposely designed to enable people to re-live the greatest memories of their lives, using creative and fun methods. Whilst this resource has wide appeal, it will be particularly life-enhancing for people living with dementia and older individuals. 

More Than A Game 

Our memories make us who we are. Our stories– the sports we follow, the places we grew up, the people we love, the hobbies that we’ve followed – are central to our identity. This game has been designed to support individuals who might have barrier to connecting with their memories, such as people living with dementia, and to bridge the gap between generations – helping to promote great conversations. 

There are thirteen reminiscence topics within the game – including rugby league, sport, schooldays, work, food, holidays, and local communities – that have been identified by Age-Exchange’s reminiscence experts as important pillars of personal identity for many people. These themes each have their own purpose-designed reminiscence questions.  

The game is wonderfully simple. Participants just roll two die to select the question they will ask to the person they are playing with – supporting a spontaneous, free flowing, and fun conversations. 

Age Exchange and Community Integrated Care co-developed these questions working with more than twenty people, including people who live with dementia and older people accessing social care. The questions they have included were specially selected after spurring joyful moments, exciting conversations, and real happiness in testing. By providing this game for free for anyone who can benefit, it is hoped that many more people will experience this joy.  

This is more than just a game – it will be a relationship transforming resource for many. Often, families who have a loved one living with dementia can find conversations challenging, struggling to connect with them and find fresh areas of conversation. People sometimes wish that they could know more about their loved one and their history. Through supporting exciting and interesting conversations, this game makes a difference – promoting and preserving a person’s-life history through the sharing of stories.  

It can also be invaluable for people working in social care and community settings. For care workers supporting people who are older than them, it can help bridge the generation divide. When supporting isolated individuals, it gives them the comfort of focused time and attention, with someone who listens and cares. 

But simply it can also be a wonderful experience for Rugby League fans and anyone who wishes to share and listen to a story. Watch Dorothy sharing some of her happiest memories with BBC Radio Merseyside presenter Steve Roberts – watch the full video here.

Championing Inclusion  

Community Integrated Care is the Official Social Care Partner of the RLWC2021 and one of Britain’s biggest care providers. This resource has been created as part of its ground-breaking RLWC2021 Inclusive Volunteering Programme, which aims to positively engage the talents of people who access social care in the event and in tournament communities to change lives.  

Age Exchange is a subsidiary charity of Community Integrated Care and is renowned for their work as the pioneers of creative engagement in supporting older people and people living with dementia.  

John Hughes, Director of Partnerships and Communities at Community Integrated Care, says:

“This game has an important purpose. There are few things that you can give to a person that are more important than your time, an interested ear and good company. We want to support people to share their memories, helping to overcome isolation and bring people together.  

We have seen the impact game that this game can have on people living with dementia and older people, so we are excited to now share it widely for free. Often quality resources like this can be expensive for care groups and community settings. By gifting this game through such a significant platform as the Rugby League World Cup 2021, we hope to reach and help many people.” 

David Savill, Creative Director at Age-Exchange, says:

“It has been wonderful to have the opportunity to design a product that can reach and benefit so many people, through using the profile of the Rugby League World Cup 2021. 

We had great fun working with the people we support to develop this concept and together, we found some wonderful reminiscence themes and questions. This free game will make a real difference to the people who play it. We encourage anyone who can benefit from this project to download it. If you know a family, care service or community group that it can help, please spread the word.” 

DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE REMINISCENCE DICE GAME HERE.  

Match details: Ireland Wheelchair RL v Wales Wheelchair RL Venue: Glyndwr University, Wrexham, Glyndwr University Sports Hall Mold Road Wrexham LL11 2AH Date:16 October 2021 12:45

Welcome to August’s newsletter. This edition features our stakeholder survey, the Paralympic Games and Birmingham 2022.

Help our work by taking part in our stakeholder survey

Working effectively with our members and other stakeholders is important to us and vital as we develop our plans. We want to listen and understand your experience of working with us over the last 12 months. Taking part in our stakeholder survey will help us improve our services, policies, and programmes.

Access the stakeholder survey here.

Chief Executive blog: “Enjoy the Games but we can’t rely on a legacy”

The Tokyo Paralympic Games began on 24 August and many will highlight the ‘legacy’ in their speeches and articles. Our Chief Executive, Barry Horne, writes on the Games and the wider barriers that prevent so many disabled people from accessing or enjoying an active lifestyle. He also explores why we cannot wait for and rely on a legacy to solve the issues.

Barry Horne’s Paralympic Games blog

Blog: “Sport transformed me”

The Tokyo Paralympic Games began last week, with athletes competing across 22 different sports – including swimming, which this week sees several medal events taking place. In this question and answer article, we catch up with six times Paralympics swimmer medallist and our board member, Fran Williamson, on why it has always been more than just sport for her.

Read Fran’s article.

Birmingham 2022: The Games is a real springboard for genuine inclusion

In just under a year’s time, some of the greatest athletes in the world will arrive in the West Midlands for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. Local schools and networks are getting ready to welcome the Games to their region. Pupils and teachers from Wilson Stuart School in Birmingham are excited to be involved in the build-up. Their Executive Headteacher, Simon Harris, talks to us about his hopes for the Games and their influence on the region to deliver more inclusive sporting opportunities.

Read Simon Harris’s article

Latest news from the National Disability Sports Organisations

The National Disability Sports Organisations (NDSOs) are a good starting point for many disabled people who want to be more active. They provide advice, support and opportunities for people of all ages with specific impairments to take part in sport and activity.

Here is the NDSOs’ July monthly news round-up.

Make active lives possible with us

We are the national charity and leading voice for disabled people in sport and activity. We work with others to challenge perceptions and change the reality of disability, inclusion and sport. We rely on generous fundraisers to develop and continue our work.

Support Us

Moving more where you are

We are committed to ensuring disabled people can be and stay active. Access exercise advice, workouts, and activity guides to support disabled people. This helps everyone to move more, whether at home, outside or in your local area.

Get Active

Welcome to the Disability Rights UK “Get Yourself Active” Newsletter

Welcome to the latest edition of the Get Yourself Active newsletter. This is our round up of what the Get Yourself Active team and our partners have been up to during the month of August – along with some opportunities that we hope will be of interest. You’ll hear more from us next month!

Get Yourself Active launching new Social Care resource with online webinar

We are really proud to have launched a new online pack designed for carers, support workers and personal assistants who support Disabled people and people with long term health conditions. It was designed with experts in the social care and physical activity sectors including Durham University, Sport England, Sense, Sport for Confidence, Activity Alliance and Community integrated care. It will help to facilitate further Disabled participation in physical activity by educating and empowering those who care to help Disabled people get active in a way that suits them.

Get Yourself Active decided to target carers and support workers because of their roles as essential and trusted messengers to those who they care for. Ultimately, if they understand more about the importance of physical activity and what is on offer then they will be better placed to support a Disabled person to lead a more active life.

The interactive pack offers practical help, tips and advice that can be used to support Disabled people to participate more in sport and physical activity. It is free and available online for all – designed to be shared and consumed with the sole purpose of breaking barriers to disabled participation in physical activity.  It also includes interactive worksheets that social care staff and the people they support can use to encourage conversations around the importance of physical activity and how they can make the next steps to live a more active life.

We launched the pack with an informative webinar. The event covered why and how the pack was developed, how it helps social care staff support Disabled people to get active, and what you’ll find inside the pack.

Your Stories in August

Every month we ask our community to share their experiences of getting active in a way that’s right for them, their thoughts on the latest news or what sport and physical activity mean to them.

We want to share their stories online to help raise awareness of the different ways of getting active and help other Disabled people feel confident and empowered to take the first steps to a more active life.

One of this month’s highlights has been launching our Paralympics series. For this we spoke to some our partners and friends for a diverse range of thoughts, opinions and memories of the games:

1. Anna Morell, Media and Communications Manager at Disability Rights UK told us why this years games need to be the start of real change

2. Roy Kimberley, Fit 4 Life at the Disability Resource Centre, shared his thoughts on the enduring legacy of the 2012 Paralympic games

3. Fazilet Hadi, Head of Policy at Disability Rights UK touches on her own relationship to the games and what sport and physical activity means to her

And we are finishing the series next week with a final special guest post.. stay tuned for that!

We’ve covered so much this month, and you can access all our stories here.

Tackling Inequalities Fund by Sport England – update

Over the summer the Get Yourself Active team has continued to deliver Sport England’s Tackling Inequalities Fund and what a busy summer it has been! Over the past month, we have partnered with several new organisations, bringing the total number of TIF projects that Disability Rights UK has administered funding to 47, supporting over 2,000 participants.

One of the most recent organisations we have partnered with is an East London based charity called Misgav. Misgav is a charity that supports Disabled women in London by providing a haven that offers opportunities for growth, integration, and acceptance. Misgav will be running a series of swimming and dance sessions that we’re excited to be supporting!

Out of the 47 projects DR UK has administered funding to, 16 have now come to an end. It has been wonderful reading the end of project evaluation forms that the organisations have sent us and hearing the positive impacts these projects have had on helping to improve Disabled people’s physical and mental wellbeing. The evaluation forms have also provided us with some extremely valuable learning, highlighting just how important the social element of physical activity is in helping to combat social isolation caused by the pandemic.

To finish, the team is still accepting applications for The Tackling Inequalities Fund and is particularly keen to hear from Disabled Peoples User Led Organisations that support the people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Communities community. So, if you know of any that may be interested in applying please let us know at  tacklinginequalities@disabilityrightsuk.org

Click here to find out more about the Tackling Inequalities and other Sport England funds

Active at Home

We understand that many of you may feel more comfortable getting active at home.

If you haven’t already, make sure you check out our Active @ Home section on our website. We’ve recently added a range of new accessible content from Videos to Toolkits so you can get active in a way that suits you. The page also includes videos from some of our TIF partners. As well as this, we have pages dedicated to other resources, such as worksheets and downloadable resources.

We want this page to always work for you and for that we need your help too. If there’s a resource you’d like to see more of – or you have a video of your own you think would be of interest to others in the community please reach out to the team.

The Active@Home section of the website is available here

The truth of Disabled sports fandom

Level Playing Field, a charity that focuses on removing barriers for Disabled people wishing to follow live sports as fans, has revealed the results of its annual fan survey. The organisation believes that attending and engaging with live sporting events has a positive impact on well-being. They work at every level to ensure that Disabled fans can freely access and enjoy live sport.

The report aims to receive greater feedback year on year, helping to drive change towards better access and inclusion for Disabled sports fans. Although the charity has carried out many specific surveys in the past, this is the most comprehensive survey ever, reviewing the matchday experience of Disabled fans. The survey is a first of its kind, with a strong focus on club-specific feedback that will help clubs target specific areas to improve their facilities and services.

You can read more on our Stories page

Hannah Cockroft was bloodied but not beaten as she defended her Paralympic Women’s 800m T34 title with a dominant victory.

Cockroft, the now seven-time Paralympic champion, raced with a bandaged right hand after an accident during warm up when her hand slipped and went through the spokes of her chair.

The injury did not stop her taking nearly 12 seconds off her Paralympic record from five years ago but her time was just fractions slower than her world best from Switzerland earlier this year. It was an impressive British display, with team-mate Karé Adenegan taking silver and Fabienne Andre coming home fourth.

“I’m absolutely gutted,” Cockroft joked. “I was so close that to world record, I couldn’t have got closer if I’d tried.

“I’m really happy with gold but I’m obviously a bit frustrated I couldn’t quite squeeze under that time but to go close on a rainy day.

“I did that time in Switzerland on the fastest track in the world so to come here and replicate it, I’ve got to be proud.”

Here’s the full match video from Sunday 8th August and the clash between Halifax WRL and Mersey Storm at Calderdale College’s Inspire Centre. Philip Ingham was the man behind the camera (smart phone) – this video is taken from his live stream of the match which went out over Facebook.

The YSF Podcast – The power of people and place Listen to the podcast The latest episode of The YSF Podcast speaks to the people behind the award winning walking football project in the Dearne Valley.The weekly session at Dearne Valley College created as part of Active Dearne, won the Sheffield and Hallamshire County FA Grassroots Project of the Year. We were joined by Adam Kent, Active Dearne Community Champion; Ian Whitehouse from SJD Coaching; Councillor Ken Wyatt; and Paul Cummins, former Project Manager for Active Dearne.The episode looks at the power of trusted people in a community, and how that can support people to be active for the benefit of their physical and mental health. Listen wherever you get your podcasts, and on our website.

MPs make recommendations to Government to increase activity levels Read the Sport England response The Government must renew efforts to get people exercising, concludes a Report by the DCMS Committee, after indications that the Covid-19 pandemic has caused weight gain and a fall in activity levels in children.The Report warns of the yet unknown impact of the third lockdown on people’s fitness and urges the Government and Sport England to pre-empt consequences with a nationwide campaign. The report in full includes ten conclusions and recommendations.

Barnsley and Sheffield successfully Beat the Street! What is Beat the Street? Both Barnsley and Sheffield saw the conclusion of their ‘Beat the Street’ games in the last ten days. Beat the Street turns places into giant games. People earn points, win prizes and discover more about their area by walking, running and cycling. In Sheffield, more than 60,000 people collectively travelled 452,964 miles, making it the biggest Beat the Street ever based on number of people taking part.A total of 22,661 people signed up and walked, cycled and rolled 161,043 miles in Barnsley during the six-week challenge.

Walking and biking prioritised in new Highway Code Find out more New changes to the Highway Code will give pedestrians greater priority over cars at junctions and crossings, the transport secretary has announced. Under the current code, motorists only have to give way when pedestrians step onto a crossing. The new code will also ensure cyclists have priority when travelling straight ahead at junctions.

News in brief

Planning application submitted for new leisure centre in Halfiax A new multi-million pound state-of-the-art swimming pool and leisure centre for Halifax has moved a step closer to reality after the Council submitted the planning application for the new building. Find out more… Activity Alliance responds to the National Disability Strategy Sport is recognised within the strategy under a focus policy area. Find out more… Blog: The role of walking sport in keeping people active Tim Howells, Health and Wellbeing Support Manager for Public Health England (Yorkshire and the Humber) kicked off our week looking at the impact of walking sport, looking into the role it can play in the Covid-19 recovery. Find out more… New programme sees Hard Knocks teaching young people skills for life Yorkshire’s Hard Knocks Boxing Gym is using the power of boxing to support the mental health of local young people. Find out more… Stepping off the sidelines Anna tells us the story of how a new walking rugby session in Wath has created a new-found love for team sport. Find out more…

Welcome to July’s newsletter from the Activity Alliance (Activity Alliance is the operating name for the English Federation of Disability Sport).

This edition features our response to the National Disability Strategy and the FA Disability Cup.

Activity Alliance responds to the National Disability Strategy

A new National Disability Strategy published on 28 July outlines how the government will support disabled people. Departments and agencies in government set out how they will help bring about practical and lasting change to disabled people’s lives. Sport is recognised within the strategy under a focus policy area. Read our full response to the National Disability Strategy

Vice Chair, Phil Friend: Let’s be better, not just ‘back to normal’

Activity Alliance Vice Chair, Phil Friend, discusses what we learnt and are still learning from this pandemic for disabled people in sport and activity. Read Phil’s blog

“I hope we can change perceptions and social barriers through football”

The FA Disability Cup returned to St George’s Park in July with BT Sport providing coverage – the first time the Cup has been broadcast live. Philip Heap, the FA’s National Development Manager tells us what the return of this cup means for football and its disabled players. He discusses the FA’s plans to encourage more disabled people into playing the game we love. Read Phil Heap’s article

Rainbow’s blog: “Football gives me freedom”

One of the players in the FA’s Disability Cup final was Rainbow. He took part in the blind football final for his team – Merseyside Blind and VI Football Club against RNC Hereford. We hear from him on what it was like competing in the Cup and why football is so important to him. Read Rainbow’s blog

Head Coach Paula Dunn: the Championships are a fantastic opportunity

At the beginning of July, Activity Alliance’s events team managed the National Junior Athletics Championships in Coventry. The Paralympic Games in Tokyo take place later this summer. We caught up with Head Coach for the British Athletics Paralympic Programme, Paula Dunn, to talk more about the significance of this event in such an important year. Read Paula’s article

Make active lives possible with us

We are the national charity and leading voice for disabled people in sport and activity. We work with others to challenge perceptions and change the reality of disability, inclusion and sport. We rely on generous funders and fundraisers to develop and continue our work. Support Us

Moving more where you are

We are committed to ensuring disabled people can be and stay active. Access exercise advice, workouts, and activity guides to support disabled people. This helps everyone to move more, whether at home, outside or in your local area.

Get Active

Welcome to the latest edition of the Get Yourself Active newsletter, from Disability Rights UK.

This is our round up of what the Get Yourself Active team and our partners have been up to during the month of July- and some opportunities that we hope will be of interest. More from us next month!

 

Get Yourself Active launching new Social Care resource with online webinar
We’re so excited to share  the news that we are launching our new resource, the Social Care Activity Pack, next month. We want to invite you to our launch webinar on Friday 13th August at 11am so you can find out more.We have co-produced guidance with social workers to support asset-based approaches to discussing the opportunities and outcomes brought about by physical activity. We also know that carers and support workers are also essential messengers about the importance of physical activity to disabled people.The pack will develop your knowledge of physical activity, help you to have more conversations with the people you support about getting active and how to provide active support, as well as giving you ideas to build exercise into everyday activities. We’re really excited to now be ready to launch this pack and share it with you!The webinar will include talks from DRUK, Durham University, Sense and social care staff around the importance of supporting people to be active and how this resource can help. We will also take you through how to use the pack itself. Register below and we look forward to seeing you there! We’ll also be sending out a press release before the day to help you to spread the word. You can register below and after registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. Register in advance for this webinar

Your Stories in July
Every month we ask disabled people to share their experiences of getting active in a way that’s right for them.We want to share their stories online to help raise awareness of the different ways of getting active and help other disabled people feel confident and empowered to take the first steps to a more active life. One of this month’s highlights has been our Spotlight series. With restrictions lifting this month we uncovered how the pandemic has changed how Disabled people are getting active. For this we spoke to some our partners and friends for 3 unique stories:1. DanceSyndrome told us how they kept dancing through the pandemic2. Wheels for Wellbeing explained how a hybird model worked for their charity3. Living Options Devon showed a roadmap to digital inclusionWe’ve covered so much this month, and you can access them all on our stories page here.

Tackling Inequalities Fund by Sport England – update   
Disability Rights UK (DR UK) is one of the National Delivery Partners for Sport England’s Tackling Inequalities Fund (TIF). The fund aims to reduce the negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic and any widening of inequalities in participation rates in sport and physical activity.To-date Disability Rights UK has funded approximately 40 projects, via a range of organisations, across England – all of them delivering different kinds of activities. Some of the projects have now completed and we’ve had some great feedback about how projects have supported people to get or keep active, feel less isolated, and more connected during the pandemic. A new and exciting part of our “TIF offer” is supporting the funded organisations to build resilience as we emerge from the pandemic.We are still accepting applications, from User Led Organisations (ULOs), or organisations that can demonstrate a user-led project idea, that supports Disabled people, and/or people with long-term health conditions, to keep active in a Covid-19 safe environment and in a way that is right for them. We encourage organisations that support Disabled people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, and other under-represented communities, to apply. Projects must be delivered by 31st March 2022. For more details, including how to apply, please contact: tacklinginequalities@disabilityrightsuk.org or call Elliot on 0203 687 0771 Click here to find out more about the Tackling Inequalities and other Sport England funds

In addition to pre-booked appointment sessions, the NHS are also running regular walk-in vaccination clinics throughout Calderdale where you do not need to book in advance.

They hold these clinics subject to demand and deliver vaccinations on a first-come first-served basis.

These clinics are open to anyone

• over 18 who has not already received their first vaccination.
• over 40 who had their first vaccination over 8 weeks ago. (You must ensure that you attend a vaccination clinic which is delivering the same vaccine type as your first jab).

If you have any questions about the COVID-19 vaccination please take a look at their Frequently Asked Questions

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