NPT Mini Dragons PAN Disability Football Club have been awarded insport Cub of the Month for their fantastic commitment to the programme.
The club provides opportunities for disabled children to enjoy football sessions within a fun, but safe environment. The club aims to increase physical activity whilst also improving participants’ social, mental and physical well-being.
Married couple Claire and Lee East first set up the club for their son Ryan so that he could enjoy sport whilst also develop physical and social skills. In order to ensure they approached the sessions correctly, Claire and Lee chose to embark on the insport programme, and are now working towards Ribbon standard. They knew that the insport programme would enable them to not only offer children the opportunity to play football in a fun environment but also develop a sustainable framework that ensured the club provided the correct provisions for the children.
Through working with NPT’s Disability Sport Wales Development Officer Michelle Lewis, Claire and Lee have been given the re-assurance that they are working in the right direction, whilst also developing their own knowledge and skills, and utilising the resources provided by insport. There has also been an increase in the promotion of NPT Mini Dragons, who have even received support from other coaches, allowing their members to experience variance in their sessions.
Claire spoke about insport: “everyone should have the right to play sport, you are probably an inclusive club and do not realise it. If in doubt, contact your local disability officer for help, with going through the insport process.”
The club’s enthusiasm to engage with the insport programme and the dedication of its members are what has earned its recognition as insport Club of the Month. As a result of the insport process, the club’s volunteers have achieved Football Leaders and First Aid qualifications, as well attended the Disability Inclusion Training, which inevitably has benefited the participants
NPT’s Disability Sport Wales Development Officer, Michelle Lewis said: “Mini Dragon PAN Disability Football is a great club and the commitment from Lee and Claire East is outstanding. There was a gap in NPT for a PAN football club so Claire and Lee decided to set up the football club due to their son wanting to play football. The club is growing every week and the children really enjoy gaining all the benefits from being active”.
The next step for Mini Dragon PAN Disability Football club is to continue through the insport process and achieve the ribbon standard! Exciting times ahead for the club!
