An inspirational Inclusive Futures Regional event at Llandarcy Sport Academy provides an inspiring enrichment experience for 120 young people!
On Friday 15th January, the Inclusive Futures Regional Camp at the impressive Llandarcy Sport Academy in NPT, welcomed 120 pupils from Special Teaching Facilities (STF) across Swansea and south Powys. Welcoming the pupils were a star-studded line-up of Paralympians and Disability Sport Wales Academy athletes, several inclusive sports clubs, sports students from both Gower and NPT Colleges and last but by no means least, our inspiring team of IF and ROAR volunteers!
Adding further value and inspiration to the event was one of our DSW Board Members and former Wales and Lions rugby international, Ryan Jones, who addressed the audience to officially open the event.
The theme of this year’s event was very much around promoting ENRICHMENT, WELLBEING, PARTICIPATION, INSPIRATION and VOLUNTEERING. We were therefore extremely grateful to everyone who attended and supported this event to ensure that those themes were truly delivered.
During the opening of the event, young people were inspired by the volunteering journey of three of our IF team members, James Coyle-King and Jordan Rosser (both IF Mentors and Ambassadors) and Beth Harris (Platinum YA and one of our most committed IF volunteers).
Throughout the event, young people had the unique opportunity to listen to several of our elite athletes who shared their journeys in sport and how it played a part in transforming their lives. These athletes included Rhys Jones, Tony Mills, Ash Hellier, Josh Morgan, Josh Clarke, Paul Karabardak and Jenny McLoughlin.
The young people also had an opportunity to try their hand at several inclusive sports including rock climbing, boccia, athletics, wheelchair basketball, sitting volleyball and rugby, all of which are available in the community. To evidence young people’s experiences of taking part within these activities, our IF Team used learning from the ROAR project to capture this experience through an emoticon scorecard to report their feelings during each sporting taster. We are delighted to say that the overall feedback was extremely positive. As one teacher from Bishopston quoted “The pupils had a fantastic time. They were 'bouncing' when they came back and couldn't wait to tell the rest of us what they did!”
In addition to the above, Disability Sport Wales and Inclusive Futures were delighted to welcome Nia Ramage from the WCVA as part of our collaborative work with their project ‘Volunteering Spirit Wales.’ This project looks at ways to improve volunteer management at events, and our involvement works specifically around inclusion to capture the experience of young disabled volunteers and share our learning across the sector.
The IF team wish to extend their thanks and appreciation to Youth Sport Trust and Spirit of 2012 for their continued support of Inclusive Futures, which enables us to continue to breakdown barriers to sports volunteering so that disabled and non-disabled young people can enjoy the benefits of volunteering together.
Finally, Disability Sport Wales and the City & County of Swansea Sports Development wish to thank the entire IF team for their tremendous efforts and innovative thinking in delivering an inspirational event.
