The University of Bristol Game Changers Programme supports university students into training, leadership and volunteering opportunities. The university partners with organisations that have expertise in particular fields within sport to up-skill their students, and that’s when they got in touch with Access Sport!

John Baker, Access Sport trustee, developed the relationship between the Bristol team and the local university, and in October, we delivered our first workshop, Disability Inclusive Training Manual to the students. Our Inclusive manual supports volunteers and coaches to deliver inclusive sports activities to disabled and non-disabled people; encouraging volunteers to think outside the box and ensure that everyone is included.

The students who attended were eager and open to learn; gaining a greater awareness into the varying disabilities and health conditions and adapting activities. It was then time to put theory into practice. The workshop encourage volunteers to trial ideas, ask questions about potential activities and have a go at leading inclusive activities.

It was great to see the students trial different pieces of equipment, moving away from traditional sports and adapting the activity to be inclusive to everyone. There were some activities that even the Ignite team had not seen before!

"It has been great to collaborate with Access Sport, providing a diverse volunteering experience for our students as well as equipping them with numerous skills through their in house training. These are skills which our students can use post university and take with them into their career paths, skills which they might not receive from their day to day lecture style learning" - Lisa, Sport Development Officer, University of Bristol

Access Sport and the Disability Inclusion programme will continue to support the University of Bristol Game Changers programme to support the development of their students each term. We hope to see some of the Bristol students down at our Ignite community clubs delivering to our young disabled people and their families.