A project which last year helped more than
1,300 able and disabled youngsters to play sport in Manchester and
Cheshire has been awarded the 2009 BBC Power of Sport Award,
supported by Sport England.
The Children’s Able and Disabled Sport
programme (CADS), based at the Seashell Trust in Cheshire, provides
sport and physical activity sessions for both able and disabled
children in an environment designed to include everyone equally.
Thanks to CADS, thousands of young people have taken part in sports
activities, regardless of their abilities or backgrounds.
The BBC Power of Sport award recognises real
projects that have made a difference in the community and the CADS
project is a leading example of this.
CADS provides young people, especially those
with severe, complex and multiple disabilities, with the same
opportunities to enjoy sport as other children their age. They work
tirelessly to break down barriers of sports participation by
creating a better understanding of disability issues amongst
non-disabled participants. CADS has 35 different sports on offer
including swimming, squash, football, cycling, cricket, rugby and
gymnastics.
Michelle Flannery from Stockport has two
children. Her daughter, aged six, is able bodied and her son, age
nine, has Cerebral Palsy and a development delay. As a family, they
have attended a number of CADS events in the area, together.
Michelle said:
“I have supported my son at every CADS event
that he has attended. I have seen first hand how successful and
beneficial they can be, not only for my own children but other
children who attend. The CADS events allow my family to attend and
experience the activities together. They have both had the chance
to try so many different sports through the years and it has given
my son a lot of confidence to try different things and to meet new
friends.”
CADS has proven to be a success in the area,
and has inspired a number of similar projects across the rest of
the North West. Other projects are now being set up and run in
Merseyside, Lancashire and Cumbria as well as other parts of
Cheshire and Manchester.
Collecting the BBC Power of Sport Award, CADS
Development Manager, Steve Harp, said:
"We're honoured to have got this level of
recognition. At the end of the day we're just a small charity
trying to change sport so this means a great deal to us. We believe
that sport can be played by anyone and should be enjoyed by all,
regardless of ability. Hopefully winning this award will help us
take our programme to thousands more children across the North
West."
David Holdsworth, Controller BBC English
Regions, added: "All of our Power of Sport award winners are making
a real difference through sport to the lives of people in their
communities. Finding and telling these fantastic stories back
to our audiences across England are at the heart of what the BBC is
here to do, so we're delighted to be part of these awards."
Sport England is supporting the BBC Power of
Sport Award. Jennie Price, Sport England’s Chief Executive,
said:
“This award celebrates the power of sport to
improve lives and enrich local communities. The CADS programme
proves just what can be achieved when you have great
ideas backed by dedicated people.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors:
You can read a full profile of Children's Able
and Disabled Sport by going to their case
study page
For more information on the BBC Power of Sport
Awards, supported by Sport England, please visit http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/8296653.stm
Children’s Able and Disabled
Sport
- Last year CADS created sports opportunities
for around 1,100 young people, of which 517 had special educational
needs
- 202 of these young people were from the black
and ethnic minority communities
- There are now a number of satellite CADS
programmes in the North West across the 5 counties in the
region
- CADS aims to spread the great work they’ve
achieved across the region: they are creating a programme supported
by the Macclesfield Sport Development Department to organise
regular sport, health and leisure clubs to take place at the David
Lewis Centre.
- Manchester City Council has helped to create
week-long CADS events at Sportcity in Manchester. Over 200 young
people took part of which 60% had special educational needs
- Go to: http://www.seashelltrust.org.uk/cads/
Sport England
Sport England invests National Lottery and
Exchequer funding in organisations and projects that will grow and
sustain participation in grassroots sport and create opportunities
for people to excel at their chosen sport.
Sport England is committed to creating a
world-leading community sport system, and has set specific and
measurable targets to achieve by 2012/13:
- One million people doing more sport
- A 25% reduction in the number of 16- to
18-year-olds who drop out of at least five key sports
- Improved talent development systems in at
least 25 sports
- A measurable increase in people’s
satisfaction with their experience of sport
- A major contribution to the delivery of the five hour
sports offer for children and young people.