Disability

BE Without Barriers

We want to give everyone the opportunity to discover and enjoy basketball. We’re working hard to make sure the opportunities for disabled people are increasing across the country and throughout the sport.

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Hoopz Basketball ProgramME

Over the past year, Basketball England and Access Sport have been developing an opportunity to enhance the opportunities for disabled people to be more involved in basketball by developing a community and club-based programme - Hoopz Basketball.

How do I get involved as a club?

  1. Get in touch with Access Sport to find out more about Hoopz and the support you can receive to get started. 
  2. Access Sport and Basketball England will support you to develop a launch plan, which will include connecting you with your local community and identifying volunteers. 
  3. Book your free Disability Inclusion Training with Access Sport. 
  4. Promote your new Hoopz sessions, with support and guidance from Access Sport and Basketball England. 
  5. Launch, learn and continue to grow sessions through players and new connections. 

If you have any questions, please email the team at Access Sport via [email protected] or Basketball England Club and Volunteers Development Manager Vicki Price. You can find out more about Access Sport and Hoopz offer on the Access Sport website

Not quite ready to launch sessions or have any questions? Complete the expression of interest form below and a member of the team will get back to you!

Learning Disability or Learning Difficulty

A number of clubs provide playing opportunities for players with a learning disability and players with autism.

Special Olympics

We work in partnership with the Special Olympics, who offer year-round training and competition for children and adults with a learning disability across England.

To find a local group, or for guidance on coaching people with learning disabilities, go to the Special Olympics website.

You can also contact Mencap Sport, who provide opportunities for playing sport.

Play Unified

Play Unified is a global movement aimed at ending the injustice, intolerance and inactivity of young people with intellectual disabilities, by building a unified generation through sport. A Special Olympics Programme, delivered by the Youth Sport Trust, it is aimed at young people in secondary and special schools.

It encourages players with a learning disability to play on the same team as those without. It builds friendships, helps social interaction and breaks down the stigma that some people may have around people with disability.

It is funded by Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and jointly administered by DCMS and Sport England.

Dwarf Sports

The Dwarf Sports Association UK promotes grass roots participation starting with young athletes from the age of two.

They use sport as a tool to break down the barriers of difference within society and to encourage confidence and empower their members.

Deaf or Hearing Impaired

England Deaf Basketball organise Deaf Basketball competitions, leagues and national teams for players who are deaf or have a hearing impairment. Elite players can progress through to the GB Deaf Basketball team.

Physical Disability

Wheelchair basketball is a fast, fun and competitive game offering massive social and fitness benefits to those with a physical disability. It accommodates a wide range of abilities, including paraplegics, amputees, those with spina bifida, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis – and non-disabled too.

You don't need your own sports wheelchair or even to be in a wheelchair every day to go along and try the sport at one of over 100 clubs nationwide. Visit the British Wheelchair Basketball website.

Dependent on the level of physical disability there may also be opportunities to play in our main leagues.

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