Disability

Mapping disability

We know that almost one in five people in England have a long-standing limiting disability or illness, and that compared to other groups, disabled people are much less likely to take part in sport or physical activity. 

Data from our latest Active Lives Adult Survey shows that disabled people or those born with a long-term health condition are twice as likely to be physically inactive (41%), compared with those without (20%). Furthermore, it increases sharply the more impairments an individual has – 49% of those with three or more impairments are inactive.

To better understand this population group, and to support people who work in the sport and activity sector to reach and engage disabled people, we’ve created a suite of resources – Mapping Disability.

These are designed to aid a variety of organisations, helping us all plan effective programmes by better knowing the audience.

Who we work with

From focusing on social inclusion through education to supporting people with complex communication needs, we're working with a range of partners to help more disabled people get active.

We believe a collaborative approach will help get more disabled people active, which is why we’re always interested in developing new partnerships with organisations who know and understand the specific audiences we want to target. This includes partners who we’ve traditionally not worked with, such as small or new organisations. 

By ensuring investments are research and evidence-based, we can help deliver more opportunities for disabled people to get involved with sport and physical activity. 

One of the key partners we work with to help us do this is Activity Alliance, a membership organisation working to make active lives possible. 

The Alliance work in partnership with us by providing research about disabled people and sport, as well as establishing and developing disability networks. It also supports organisations with marketing and communications.