Tag: Scottish Disability Sport

Children living with muscle wasting conditions rally together at charity sport event

On Saturday 24 August 2024 Muscular Dystrophy UK and Scottish Disability Sport hosted a free sporting event.

The leading charity for more than 110,000 children and adults in the UK living with one of over 60 muscle wasting and weakening conditions hosted the free event for children aged under 18 living with muscle wasting and weakening conditions.

Children came together from different parts of Scotland and had the opportunity to try different sporting activities, such as curling, powerchair football, boccia and swimming. The day was a success as they learnt new skills and could meet other children living with a muscle wasting and weakening condition.

Joe Moan, from Forth Valley, attended the charity event with his son who has Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Joe said: “It’s great to meet up with parents you haven’t seen since the last event.

“These events are confidence building for kids – they get to try new sports that they haven’t tried before. It’s great to watch my son interact with peers and children with a similar range of movement and shared experiences. I would recommend.” 

Participants at Muscular Dystrophy UK and Scottish Disability Sport event 2024 Copyright @MuscularDystrophyUK © Julie Broadfoot 

Jacqueline Munro, Head of Regional Support, Outreach, and Information, who attended on the day said: “We believe in the power of community and inspire collaboration across our whole muscle wasting and weakening community.

“Events like this are a brilliant way of bringing people together, from the children taking part in the activities to their parents or carers watching from the side lines. A huge thank you to everyone who attended and to Scottish Disability Sport for partnering with us.”

Scottish Disability Sport is the Scottish governing and co-coordinating body of all sports for people of all ages and abilities with a physical, sensory or learning disability.

Joshua Thomson, Events Manager for Scottish Disability Sport said: “The event was a brilliant opportunity to provide sport and physical activity to young people with muscle wasting conditions, allowing them to grow and develop a community.

“Seeing the development of friendships and the joy on the participants’ faces throughout the day has demonstrated the value that events like this can have.

“There were some fantastic skills on show throughout the boccia, curling and swimming sessions.

“Thank you to Muscular Dystrophy UK and to everyone who attended, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and hope to see these children back at more events in the future.”

Participants at Muscular Dystrophy UK and Scottish Disability Sport event 2024 Copyright @MuscularDystrophyUK © Julie Broadfoot 

Special thanks to Scottish Boccia, Scottish Curling and representatives from the Scottish Swimming for their support on the day.

Find out more about Muscular Dystrophy UK and how the charity can provide support   musculardystrophyuk.org/support

Charity to host free Scottish Disability Sports Event for children living with muscle wasting conditions

Muscular Dystrophy UK and Scottish Disability Sport join forces to host a free Scottish sporting event on Saturday 24 August 2024.

The leading charity for more than 110,000 children and adults in the UK living with one of over 60 muscle wasting and weakening conditions is calling on people in Scotland to join the free session.

The event will give children aged under 18 living with muscle wasting and weakening conditions the opportunity to try different sporting activities, such as curling, powerchair football, boccia and swimming.

Children will be fully supported with adaptations, so they can enjoy playing sports, learning new skills, and meeting other children living with a muscle wasting and weakening condition.

There will be an opportunity for people to speak with Scottish Boccia, Powerchair Football Players and representative from Scottish Swimming on the day. Special thanks to Scottish Curling and SPFA for providing equipment.

Paralympian Stephen McGuire, 40, from Hamilton, Glasgow, lives with merosin-deficient congenital muscular dystrophy. From the age of 14 Stephen has used a power wheelchair and has been part of the GB squad for 20 years. He is due to compete in his fourth Paralympian games in Paris (28 Aug – 8 Sept) following his appearances at London, Rio and Tokyo.

He said: “It has always been a dream of mine to compete at the Paralympics, so to be able to compete at my fourth one is incredible. I love competing in sport – sport is my passion. I’ve been hooked ever since, as it’s given me a purpose.

“The sport is really inclusive, you can play Boccia from school level to regional or national level, so I would encourage everyone to give it a try.

“That’s why the Scottish Disability Sport Event is important to help children explore different sports to build up their confidence and abilities. I had the opportunity to speak and demonstrate at some of the events. It’s joyous to see the younger generation getting involved and potentially witness upcoming future Paralympians.”

Jacqueline Munro, Head of Regional Support, Outreach, and Information said: “We’re delighted to have partnered with Scottish Disability Sport once again to offer children aged under 18 the opportunity to try different sporting activities.

“It’s a great opportunity for families to meet others in the muscle wasting and weakening community in Scotland to engage in a fun filled day and find out how Muscular Dystrophy UK can offer support.”

Scottish Disability Sport is the Scottish governing and co-coordinating body of all sports for people of all ages and abilities with a physical, sensory or learning disability.

Joshua Thomson, Events Manager for Scottish Disability Sport said: “Scottish Disability Sport is delighted to be working in partnership with Muscular Dystrophy UK to provide a unique opportunity for children and young people living with muscle wasting conditions.  

“All of the sports are being delivered by coaches from Scottish Governing Bodies with expertise and knowledge in working with people with muscular dystrophy and similar conditions.”

The event will take place between 12.45pm– 4.30pm at Grangemouth Sports Complex, Abbots Road, Grangemouth, Falkirk, FK3 8JB. Accessible toilets and changing areas will be available including a Changing Places toilet.  

Find out more and register your interest musculardystrophyuk.org/Scottish-disability-sports-event

Scottish disability programme honoured at UK Coaching Awards

A programme designed to keep disabled people physically active during the coronavirus pandemic has been recognised for its positive impact, taking home the Coaching for an Active Life Award at this year’s UK Coaching Awards.

The prestigious annual celebration of Great Coaching, which showcases the diverse work of coaches, projects and organisations making a huge difference to the health and happiness of the nation, was held virtually on Thursday, 3 December.

Scottish Disability Sport’s ‘Be Active, Be Well’ programme was created to ensure participants with a disability were able to stay active, to encourage the physically inactive to become active and to combat social isolation during the pandemic.

Working in partnership with the Scottish Association of Mental Health, individuals were encouraged to take part in daily activity sessions, including yoga, wheelchair-based activity, stretching and HIIT, as well as weekly mental well-being sessions.


Reacting to the news, Scottish Disability Sport CEO Gavin Macleod, said: “We’re really honoured to be the recipient. It’s a prestigious UK-wide award and is a testament to the work undertaken by staff at SDS.

“The Be Active, Be Well programme really encapsulates how we’ve tried to reach out, connect and support participants that are shielding or were struggling during the lockdown period. We have good working relationships with the governing bodies, coaches and the volunteers, so encouraging them to get involved [in the programme] was relatively easy.

“The satisfaction for me is that a programme we’ve put in place in Scotland has been recognised on a UK level.”



Reflecting on this year’s awards, UK Coaching’s Director of Coaching Emma Atkins, said: “Our heartfelt congratulations to Scottish Disability Sport and all of our winners and finalists. What you’ve all achieved in this extremely difficult year is superb. 

“You and the rest of the 3 million coaches in the UK have gone beyond the call of duty to make sure your participants didn’t lose momentum with their sport and physical activity goals and ambitions or weren’t isolated from the social-side of activity.

“You realised that for your participants, and indeed yourselves, coaching and staying active isn’t just a hobby or a past-time, it’s a way of life that deeply affects mental and physical well-being. 

“We applaud you for your efforts, your inspirational resilience and the way you conducted yourself without fuss or fanfare.

“As we move towards Christmas and the new year, our message to the British public is don’t forget to thank your coach for the positive impact they’re having on yours and other people’s lives. Be kind, support one another and stay connected – we’re here for the coach.”

Winners on the night were:

Awards for Coaches:

Children and Young People’s Coach of the Year 

Tom Bowen-Hall (rugby union) (Wiltshire, Melksham)

Community Coach of the Year 

Prina Karia (badminton) (East Midlands, Leicester)

Changing Lives Award 

Scott Burns (rugby league) (Greater Manchester, Wigan)

Talent Development Coach of the Year

Emma Collings-Barnes (swimming) (Devon, Tavistock)

High Performance Coach of the Year – supported by UK Sport

Peter Rome (wheelchair fencing) (West Midlands, Coventry)

Young Coach of the Year – supported by Sport Wales

Amy Moulton (gymnastics) (Somerset, Yeovil)

Lifetime Achievement Award

Donald Park (football) (Scotland, Lochaber)

The Coaching Chain

Marcus Rashford (football) – Colin Little, Dave Bushell, David Horrocks, Eamon Mulvey, Louis van Gaal, Maria Kelly, Neil Harris, Paul McGuinness, Stuart Leicester, Tarun Kapur and Tony Whelan. 

Awards in Support of Coaches:

Coach Developer of the Year

Sarah Green (netball) (East Midlands, Nottingham)

Transforming Coaching Award 

ECB – Cities Programme Team

Coaching for an Active Life Award

Scottish Disability Sport – Be Active, Be Well

Young Start empowers sporting Scots to have their say

An apprenticeship programme designed to empower young people who have a disability to have a voice in shaping sporting activity in Scotland receives £49,985 of Young Start funding being awarded today.  Disability Sport (SDS) is one of five groups sharing in £206,196 of funding from the Big Lottery Fund’s Young Start programme, thanks to dormant bank and buildings account money.  Continue reading Young Start empowers sporting Scots to have their say