Local MP fights for equal access to sport for disabled children with Paralympians in Parliament

Marie Tidball, Member of Parliament for Penistone and Stocksbridge, welcomed Paralympians and national sports organisations to Parliament to work together to improve access to sport and PE in school for children with SEND.

ParalympicsGB found that only 1 in 4 disabled children said they regularly participate in sport and PE in school. The scale of the problem is huge, with 1.7 million disabled children comprising 15% of the school population nationally.

In Parliament, Marie brought together Ruby Bishop, wheelchair tennis para-athlete, and Grace Glough, Paralympian and PE teacher, along with leading organisations including ParalympicsGB, Activity Alliance, Association for PE, Sport for Development Coalition, Lawn Tennis Association and Durham Trinity School.

Following the Paris 2024 Games, ParalympicsGB launched their Equal Play campaign, calling for no disabled child to be left on the sidelines. Equal Play aims to ensure all teachers are trained in inclusive PE, that the PE curriculum is reformed, and that there is an increase to the proportion of disabled teachers in the workforce. Ruby Bishop has also been campaigning for “Ruby’s Law”, which would mandate sports wheelchairs in every school, following her own experience of being left out of PE lessons in school.

The Government recently launched Inclusion 2028, backed by £300,000, to improve PE and sport for more than 240,000 pupils with SEND. This initiative will work with a network of schools to provide expert training for teachers to deliver inclusive PE lessons. The Government’s Curriculum Review has acknowledged that PE must be made more inclusive for children with SEND, whilst the Estates Strategy has committed to creating accessible changing rooms in schools.

Marie Tidball MP said:

“Every child deserves equal access to sport and PE in school. When I was in school, there were no inclusive PE lessons, so I ended up refereeing netball and hockey matches, rather than being encouraged to take my distance swimming further.“Sport has the unique power to break down barriers, build confidence and foster a sense of belonging. I’m pleased to see the government acknowledging that more needs to be done to ensure children with SEND can fully participate, and is already taking action to improve this through Inclusion 2028.“I want this to reach to every child in our constituency. Following my 7km swim last winter, I’m continuing to work closely with Stocksbridge Leisure Centre to bring a fully accessibly disabled changing room to the pool. No child should be left on the sidelines.”

Marie Tidball is encouraging local children and young people with SEND, from Penistone and Stocksbridge, to get in touch with her if they would like to share their own experiences of inclusive and accessible sport and PE in school, as part of the Equal Play campaign. You can get in touch by emailing marie.tidball.casework@parliament.uk.