[stevieb]

Hi all - maybe you are in the same position as us and really struggle to get 'fair play' in a sporting context for your son/daughter?
Now I wont pretend this is going to benefit everyone as there 'is' provision for some disability aspects out there but what I found was that there is very little out there for 'Moderate' Cp - what I mean by this is for those children who can walk - but cannot run at speed.
If you see calmsoccer.com - this is totally free by the way - I have recenlty been involved with CP Sport - a charity who have done some great work with providing sporting opprtunities for children with CP. However, unfortunatley - funding issues seem to have become a sticking point lately - but in the past 4 months - I have been able to get this 'category' going! We went to the London Soccerdome twice and set up a session/matches for children specific to this category. Anyway, as I always say - travelling is the key!!
If your child fits into this category and would like sporting opportunities then please take a look. It includes children who can walk unaided - those who may have sticks/open fronted walking frames etc. There 'are' many children with milder CP who can run at speed- these were placed in separate groups at the Soccerdome - and there 'are' opportunities already in existence on a regional basis here. However, there is nothing (as far as I know it) for this 'middle' bit! Anyway, please feel free to take a look - plse see 'Disability Page' (as this is just the category' re non-running at speed - it does 'not' just mean for children with CP - but any disability which puts them in this position. A new astro is currently under construction in manchester and will perfectly fit the bill - smaller so less distance to cover...and lots of touches!! Yes, football is the main focus to start with, but this will soon spread out to many other sports. I am a qualified FA coach and PE teacher so any questions then plse fire away. Cheers Steve

[rachel3]

Hi
yes, i absolutely agree. Well done for getting on to this. There is a massive gap for sporty children who also have a mild/moderate disability. I have been in touch with CP Sport - but there is nothing happening near us. We've opted in the short term for solo activities - swimming and riding particularly. in group sport my daughter just gets disheartened at always being the 'worst' as she sees it. she dreads school sports day as she is in mainstream school. i'm considering trying to set up something myself, but not sure what. I'm not a PE instructor or anything, just a mum who can see a massive gap that needs filling.

[stevieb]

Hi Rachel thanks for that and yes, my son is in mainstream too so he often has the same 'coming last' feeling. However...as parents, we are the ones who understand most!! What I did, regardless of being a PE teacher was try to be inventive - very few teachers really pick up on inclusion in sport - especially at Primary so whenever I could, I went to events at school or away from the school and made 'suggestions' re how my son would get a fairer go.
I have loads of ideas - so this may help any parent - re football/hockey/basketball/netball/Athletics etc and I call it 'fair play' - simply as my son couldnt get to the ball - he was allowed to have the ball passed to him from a dead ball situation and noone could tackle him and he kept the ball until he shot or passed. It worked amazingly really as staff and pupils got used to it as they knew we wanted to get him involved. He has just moved to secondary and whilst PE teachers may feel they dont want to be told their job - I still sent them a summary of things we do with him i.e. on an Athletics event at another school - they had loads of diff events - i.e. the 600m run - my son did 200m - walking it really but it worked and he loved it! 100m he did last 20m etc - so if you are resourceful, you can make a difference where theres a will!! Anyway, if you or any other partent want other ideas re sport - please feel free to ask me here and I will elaborate. thanks Steve