Disability Bowls Advisory Guide

2019 Edition

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Welcome

The sport of bowls is open to all. The aim of this guide is to provide clubs, volunteers and coaches with ideas and guidance on ensuring that everyone, regardless of disability or health condition, has access to the sport of bowls, whether as a beginner or an elite performer.

The Disability Steering Group is formed by representatives from the Bowls Development Alliance (BDA), Disability Bowls England (DBE), Bowls England (BE), English Indoor Bowling Association (EIBA) and Coach Bowls with support from Activity Alliance to deliver a strategic action plan that aims to make the sport more accessible for those with a range of differing impairments. The Advisory Guide has been developed as a handbook for club officials, coaches, volunteers and bowlers who: 1) Are committed to making their clubs more accessible to disabled people/bowlers

2) Are experiencing barriers to their own or their fellow members’ participation

3) Want to learn more about how their clubs can offer a more inclusive environment for disabled bowlers We encourage every club committee to familiarise itself with the content of this handbook because disability in its various forms has an impact on every club in the country.

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In this guide you will find information and advice about:

For more information about disability bowls, or if you have any questions, comments or ideas relating to the topic which are not covered in this guide, please contact disability@playbowls.org.

Item Page

Part 1: Understanding disability in bowls 5

Part 2: The first steps towards becoming a more inclusive club - Get to know your membership - Getting to know your facilities - Getting to know your volunteers and coaches

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Part 3: Understanding disabled people/bowlers - Activity Alliance - Activity Alliance’s 10 ‘Talk to Me’ Principles - Inclusive Language

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Part 4: How to include people with various impairments - Disability bowls equipment - Disability Bowls England

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Part 5: Attracting disabled people/bowlers to your club 17 Part 6: Funding 19 Part 7: Bowls Disability Mark 20

Part 8: Love Fisher Brown Award 21

Part 9: Case studies 22 Part 10: Useful contacts 26

Appendix 1: Sample membership form 27

Contents

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Part 1: Understanding disability in bowlsFor the purposes of the sport, bowlers with long-standing impairments or health problems that limit or restrict activities in any way, can be considered disabled.

Examples can include: mobility issues, breathlessness, visual impairment, hearing impairment, arthritis, learning difficulties, spinal cord injuries, etc.

Disability could occur at birth, by accident, illness or due to the natural ageing process. Therefore many bowlers join a club as non-disabled but acquire a disability later on.

Did you know? l There are 9.4 million disabled people in England l 5 million disabled people are over the state

pension age l 43% of adults over 65 are disabled and 75% of

adults over 80 are disabled l Only 8% of disabled people need wheelchair

access l 70% of disabled people have not taken part in

any physical activity over the past month Why is disability important in bowls? Disability affects a large part of the population and it CANNOT be ignored by any club. By its nature, our sport offers an ideal opportunity for disabled people to get active and meet new people in an inclusive environment. Being an inclusive club not only helps attract new members, but it also helps retain current members. A lot of impairments develop with age – some bowlers might become disabled later in their life and it is important for clubs to have the necessary provisions in place to accommodate for that.

In summary, an inclusive club has a significant advantage over other clubs in: l Recruiting new members from a wider pool of people l Providing more opportunities for disabled people/bowlers (and those of other clubs nearby) to take part in matches, roll-ups and activities l Sustaining its membership by empowering its members to play the game into their late 80s and 90s

Graph below shows most common impairment types in the country

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Part 2: The first steps towards becoming a more inclusive club

Before deciding on what actions to take to improve the accessibility of your club, it is important to first conduct some research to find out what the gaps are between what your club currently offers and the needs of your membership. We suggest the following steps towards achieving that.

Get to know your membership It is essential for clubs to know the needs of their members, in order to know how best to support them. Identifying barriers that negatively affect bowlers’ experience, and addressing them, can help retain these bowlers and increase their playing careers by several years. l Introduce a disability question on your club membership form

(see Appendix 1 on page 27 for an example membership form) l Use questionnaires to consult members about their needs l Keep feedback forms or boxes in the clubhouse and encourage members

to share their needs or leave comments l Ask your coaches about the needs of those they coach l Observing bowlers during games and roll-ups. For example, if someone is

bowling from their hip and having difficulties sending long bowls, then the club might consider purchasing some ‘bowling arms’

Results from BDA Disability Survey 2019

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Getting to know your facilities The next step is to review the club’s facilities to see if they meet the needs of the club membership. Part of the facilities checklist can include: l How accessible is your club?

- Is it possible to park close to the entrance of the club? - Is there any disabled access to the green such as ramps or handrails? - Is there a level access to the clubhouse or is there a need to install ramps or lifts?

l Does the club have any adaptive equipment that can assist bowlers? - Is that equipment being used by the members? - Are bowls wheelchairs available?

l Is there information about how your club’s facilities and activities can be accessed by disabled bowlers and is that information easily and readily available? - Making information available about different ways to access the green, bar and clubhouse.

l Does your club have any disabled toilets? All this information should be on the club website, noticeboard and in the handbook. If your club does not have any of the above facilities, it does not mean it cannot cater for any disabled bowlers. However, it is essential to inform prospective visitors about what your club does provide. Sometimes, members are too hesitant to try using adaptive equipment (e.g. bowling arms) due to the perceived stigma around it. Clubs need to address such fears by encouraging all members to try the equipment and creating a culture where using adaptive equipment is considered entirely normal. Club Facility and Accessibility Questionnaire is great to use as a self-assessment tool of your club’s facilities and activities. By sharing this information with Disability Bowls England, they can subsequently refer to your club any disabled bowlers who have queried about opportunities to bowl locally. The questionnaire can be found on the next page for your reference. To access and submit the questionnaire, please contact your relevant governing body (contact details can be found on page 26).

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Getting to know your volunteers and coaches

l Are your volunteers and coaches confident and able to support bowlers with specific impairments?

This question is relevant if your club offers activities for disabled people or has a significant number of members with impairments, who would benefit from a greater awareness of inclusion (e.g. dementia, blindness or partial sight).

Additional training helps volunteers and coaches to not only build on their competence, but also gain more confidence in what they do, which in turn makes them more open to supporting disabled people/bowlers.

Including Disabled People in Bowls*

This practical workshop is aimed at club volunteers who would like to make their clubs more inclusive. The workshop focuses on practical ideas to include all bowlers in activities, regardless of disability. It encourages clubs to understand why people play bowls, how activities can be modified or adapted, and how to help bowlers progress.

Adult Safeguarding in Bowls

This workshop is aimed at those clubs who wish to create a safe and welcoming environment for all adults, particularly those with any additional needs. It focuses on ensuring all club volunteers and members, particularly the Safeguarding Officer(s), understand their role in safeguarding club members. Safeguarding in Bowls - ‘Time to Listen’

This is a bowls specific workshop aimed at Club Safeguarding Officers/ Volunteers whose clubs have junior members or sections and those who work with local schools or young people’s groups providing taster sessions. To book a place on any workshop visit www.coachbowls.org or if your club would like to host a workshop please email courses@coachbowls.org. Bursaries for the above workshops are available - contact your relevant governing body for more information. *The ‘Including Disabled People in Bowls’ workshop replaces the ‘Working with Disabled People in Bowls’

module.

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Part 3: Understanding disabled people/bowlersIt is important to understand the audience you are working with and how you can enable them to join and stay as a member of your club.

Did you know disabled people and people with long-term health conditions are twice as likely to be inactive as non-disabled people? We have been working in partnership with Activity Alliance who support organisations to enable disabled people to be, and stay, active for life. Part of their work is to understand what will help disabled people to become and stay active. The 10 principles were developed with disabled people to do just this. These principles will help sports clubs make their activities more appealing to all, which could in turn lead to more people taking part. You can find these on the next page. Activity Alliance also benefits from the wealth of its members’ expertise. These include the National Disability Sports Organisations who are a good starting point for information. They provide advice and support on impairment specific enquiry. Contact emails for each organisation can be found on page 18.

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For more information about applying the 10 principles to your activities, please visit: http://www.activityalliance.org.uk/ten-principles.

Activity Alliance’s 10 ‘Talk to Me’ Principles

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Inclusive Language When working with disabled people, it is important that the language you use is inclusive. Negative terms such as ‘sufferer’, ‘wheelchair-bound’ or ‘able-bodied’ are not acceptable. Similarly, it is important to promote your club, and the sport of bowls more widely, as an inclusive sport, one which is open to everyone and the use of language plays an important part in this as the example below demonstrates. The language used should always be positive.

Good example: “In our sports club, disabled and non-disabled people are actively encouraged to join in.” Bad example: “In our sports club, able-bodied people love seeing the disabled join in around their club.” Both statements are well intended and designed to communicate the same message, but the good example uses inclusive language to communicate this appropriately and effectively. Everyday phrases Some terminology is trickier than others. There are some terms that are more acceptable to disabled people. However, it is always important to ask before comparing one person with another with the same impairment.

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Part 4: How to include people with various impairments

The following modifications or adaptions can be used to include people with hearing impairments, visual impairments, learning disabilities or physical impairments:

Minor Modifications Major Modifications

Hearing Impairments Communication adaptations

Scoring Lollipops Increased use of visual aids, body language and signals

Visual Impairments Large print hand outs Centre string for each rink Using the ‘clock system’ Sight aids such as telescopes

and monoculars

Learning Disabilities Coloured bowls Introductory drills Visual cues

Physical Impairments Bowling arms/launchers to aid delivery

Soft bowls to allow for play across a variety of surfaces

Bowls chutes to aid delivery from a chair

Ramps to provide access to the green

Use of targets rather than jacks Motorised bowling buggies Using a ‘Bowls Thruster’ device to minimise bending

Bowling wheelchairs

For more information and support around including people with hearing and visual impairments, contact the relevant organisations on page 26.

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Disability Bowls Equipment For disabled people to participate in inclusive bowls activities it may be necessary for individuals or clubs to purchase adaptive equipment. Below is a list of equipment items that are available. Information about all equipment approved by Bowls England and EIBA can be found on Disability Bowls England’s website: www.disabilitybowlsengland.org.uk/clubs/equipment. Bowling Arms and UBI Launchers l Very useful for bowlers with knee, hip or other mobility and dexterity

issues, who are finding it difficult to bend down during delivery l Eliminates ‘bowling from the hip’ and the related damage to the green l Can prolong a bowler’s career l A club can have a half a dozen arms or launchers which can be borrowed

by the membership Bowling Wheelchairs l Allow wheelchair users to bowl without damaging the green l A club can have a couple of buggies to share among its wheelchair users

Bowling armUBI Launcher ®

Bradshaw Buggy Para Handy Wheelchair

Chairiot Bowls Wheelchair

Bowls Royce Bowls Wheelchair

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Aids to support visually impaired bowlers l A thin, white, breakable string running down the centre line of the rink

from back to front ditch l Another piece of equipment often used by visually impaired bowlers is a

monocular Mobility Aids

l The above pieces of equipment are some of many mobility aids that can

help disabled bowlers move around the green, pick up and carry their bowling equipment

Equipment Loan Scheme Disability Bowls England are looking to develop a loan scheme for those who would like to play but do not have access to any equipment. A small amount of equipment is available for loan now. If you do have any equipment which you are currently not using please contact DBE on: info@disabilitybowlsengland.org.uk

Walking Stick Ferrule Bowls & Jack Lifter Bowls Buddy

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Disability Bowls England (DBE) is the coordinating organisation for bowlers of all ages and abilities with a physical, sensory or memory/learning difficulty. The charity was set up to fill the void for disabled bowlers in the provision of disability specific bowls opportunities. Their priorities are to engage with local clubs to build a regional infrastructure that provides regular and easily accessible participation opportunities. The work of DBE differs from other national bowls bodies in that it is the only organisation with the specific aim of delivering multi disability bowls events, which include introductory sessions and introductory competitions, individual coaching and competitive opportunities at local, national and international levels. For much more information check out DBE’s website: https://www.disabilitybowlsengland.org.uk/ Contact Information General: info@disabilitybowlsengland.org.uk Address: Disability Bowls England, Gedling Indoor Bowls Club, Foxhill Road, Carlton, Nottingham, England NG4 1RL.

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Part 5: Attracting disabled people/bowlers to your bowls club

A lot of clubs who have contacted us for advice, report that they are finding it difficult to reach out to and recruit disabled people. It is important to bear in mind that most disabled people/bowlers are not related to or connected with any disabled people’s groups, therefore, reaching out to them will require the same methods used when reaching out to any other non-disabled people. However, as covered in part 3 of this handbook, how you advertise yourself is key as to whether disabled people will find your club and activities appealing. Here are some tips: l Let people know you are an inclusive club! Advertise your accessibility on

your website, social media and every other promotional material l Update your accessibility & facility details to maximise referrals l Design your promotion to target disabled people/bowlers. Follow the 10

principles, as described by Activity Alliance (page 11) l Utilise Activity Alliance’s resource packs: www.activityalliance.org.uk/how-we-help/resources/ l Make sure you provide full information about the accessibility of your

club on your website Accessibility begins online Research has indicated that disabled people prefer sufficient information about the venue they are interested in, before they make a final decision to visit it. 80% of those people check for such information online, a majority of whom go directly to the venue website. However, only a small minority of disabled people find what they are looking for and most of that information is misleading or inaccurate. 98% of people are more likely to visit a club if there is information on the club’s website, and 75% of people would not go if there is no information available. That is why we cannot stress enough the importance of having sufficient accessibility information on your club website!

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Approaching disability groups Contact local disability groups directly and invite them to use your facilities. This can prove a useful approach if such local groups exist near your club. Below is a list of some of the largest national disabled people’s organisations.

Your Local Active Partnership (AP), www.activepartnerships.org, should be able to refer you to the most appropriate organisations local to your club, or contact the National Disability Sport organisation who can provide support.

A list of National Disability Sport Organisations are listed below: l British Blind Sport, https://britishblindsport.org.uk British Blind Sport provides blind and partially sighted people with opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity

l Cerebral Palsy Sport, http://www.cpsport.org/ Cerebral Palsy Sport supports people with cerebral palsy to reach their full potential through sport and active recreation

l Dwarf Sports Association UK, https://www.dsauk.org/ Dwarf Sports Association UK promotes and provides regular sporting opportunities for people with dwarfism and restricted growth l LimbPower, http://limbpower.com/ Limbpower supports amputees and people with limb impairments to find the right sport or leisure activity for their needs and ability l UK Deaf Sport, https://ukdeafsport.org.uk/ UK Deaf Sport encourages people who are deaf and hard of hearing to participate, enjoy and excel at sport l Mencap & Special Olympics GB, https://www.mencap.org.uk/ Mencap works with the governing bodies of sport and other sports providers to promote opportunities for people with a learning disability l WheelPower, https://www.wheelpower.org.uk/ WheelPower provides opportunities, facilities and equipment to support disabled people to participate in sport and lead healthy active lives l DSActive, https://www.dsactive.org.uk/ DSActive aim to provide as many opportunities as possible for people with Down’s syndrome to lead active and healthy lives

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Part 6: FundingImprovements on the accessibility of a club’s facility, or provision of inclusive equipment, is often linked with significant investment, which is why the availability of funding grants is essential to clubs taking the necessary steps in their development.

Places where clubs can search for funding:

Your National Governing Body:

Bowls England or English Indoor Bowling Association. Their contact details can be found on page 26.

Your local Active Partnership: http://www.activepartnerships.org

There is an Active Partnership in each county and their job is to tackle inactivity and give advice to local clubs and organisations. Each Active Partnership has a funding finder and an officer that can provide clubs with advice.

Your local Community Foundation: https://www.ukcommunityfoundations.org/our-network

Community Foundations match organisations looking for funding grants with existing and potential funders and donors. Your local authority: https://www.local.gov.uk/our-support/guidance-and- re-sources/communications-support/digital-councils/social-media/go-further/a-z- councils-online

Some local authorities offer small development or facility funding. Speak to your local council to find out how their team can support you. Funding Finders: for example, https://www.grantsonline.org.uk/search/grants?f=1

Other sources of funding:

Sponsorship – many bowls clubs succeed in making sponsorship deals with local businesses. In exchange for sponsorship, clubs could offer: sponsor’s name, logos or any advertisement space on club banners, kit, club handbooks or club website; holding events under the name of a sponsor, or holding regular club events at the sponsor’s venue.

Fundraising – through fundraising you can raise awareness about your club beyond your funding needs. For fresh ideas about fundraising activities, you can visit Club Matters’ A-Z Fundraising Toolkit, accessible from their website: https://www.sportenglandclubmatters.com/looking-for-fundraising-inspiration/.

Please check the terms of each funder before proceeding with an application.

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Part 7: Bowls Disability MarkThe Bowls Disability Mark is an accreditation scheme developed to recognise and reward those affiliated bowls clubs who are inclusive and welcoming to disabled people. It represents another step forward for disability bowls in England. Aside from the recognition that the accreditation will bring to clubs, it will also allow na-tional and local bowling and/or disabled organisations to have the confidence to recommend your club’s facilities to disabled, and non-disabled people who wish to take up the sport. It is important that all clubs strive to be as inclusive as possible and embed themselves within their local community. In addition, obtaining the accreditation will: l Raise the profile of your club l Bring your club new members l Give your club priority for hosting Disability Bowls England competitions l Increase your club’s chances for funding, sponsorship and facility hire

More information about the scheme can be accessed on the BDA website http://playbowls.org/disability-bowls/advis-ory-guide from where the Bowls Disability Mark Club Pack can be downloaded. If your club would like to be considered for the Bowls Disability Mark then please email disability@playbowls.org for information on the next steps.

What are the clubs saying? “The process of securing the Bowls Disability Mark was very interesting and perhaps less painful than we at first imagined. Going through the Bowls Disability Mark process encouraged the club to ensure that all systems reflected the need to ensure disabled people/bowlers know in advance what they could expect at the club and then on arrival that a warm and friendly reception and coaching team would be available to welcome them. The Bowls Disability Mark process is something that we now need to steadily improve upon as we embrace the challenge of ensuring that disabled bowlers enjoy every opportunity to bowl at our club.” Lewis Toman, Chairman, City & County of Bristol Indoor Bowls Club

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Part 8: Love Fisher Brown AwardThe Love Fisher Brown Award was developed to recognise clubs that provided disabled participation opportunities for their bowlers. This award, named after the remarkable and inspiring Commonwealth Games achievements of Bob Love, David Fisher and Paul Brown, showcases the excellent work being undertaken by clubs with disabled bowlers around

the country, and provides a benchmark for other clubs to aspire to. All clubs affiliated to either Bowls England or English Indoor Bowling Association that offer opportunities for disabled bowlers are encouraged to nominate themselves. Nominations can be submitted by anyone within the club (e.g. club member, volunteer, coach or committee member), or outside of the club (e.g. disabled participant, carer, friend or relative). To be eligible for the award, clubs must: l Be affiliated to either Bowls England or the English Indoor Bowling

Association l Have run a regular activity for disabled bowlers that has started at least

six weeks prior to the club being nominated for an award l Have been able to integrate a significant number of disabled bowlers into

the club’s mainstream activities l Have not won the award in the last two years The Disability Steering Group members will assess each of the entries, based on the selection criteria outlined in the entry form. The panel will only consider the content in the nomination form when deciding on the winner and runners-up. Therefore, it is essential for nominators to include as much information as possible in order to increase their club’s chances of receiving the award. How To Nominate Your Club Once the nomination window is open, clubs can be nominated by completing the nomination form which can be accessed from theBowls Development Alliance’s website. http://www.playbowls.org. Nominators can either email the completed form to disability@playbowls.org, or complete the paper form and post it to: Bowls Development Alliance, Pera Business Park, Nottingham Rd, Melton Mowbray, LE13 0PB.

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Part 9: Case studies

Peacehaven & Telscombe Bowls Club have recognised the need to provide opportunities for their disabled members, or any disabled person who wishes to join the club, to play the sport and enjoy all the benefits of their club membership. That is why in the past several years the club has taken numerous steps in the right direction to achieve that, including: a The club’s head coach receiving specialised training through the Coach

Bowls ‘Working with Disabled People in Bowls’ module a Encouraging the use of inclusive equipment to facilitate the integration of

disabled bowlers to all club activities, from casual roll-ups to friendlies and league fixtures

a Receiving funding to improve facilities and provide adequate equipment to assist all people to play the sport, including the purchase of two motorised wheelchairs, the provision of a disabled toilet, and the extension of the clubhouse to allow for short mat bowls to be played over the winter months

a Looking into extending the club insurance policy to allow for members to take their wheelchairs to away games

a Showcasing bowls during Para Games events in the local community The club is accredited with Sport England’s Clubmark, a Bowls Disability Mark, and earlier this year it became a Love Fisher Brown Award runner-up. Peacehaven & Telscombe Bowls Club is now fully able to accept any person with any disability or impairment by offering them use of their equipment to play alongside the non-disabled members of the club. It has also allowed a few of the club’s former members to get back on the green and, after some coaching from the head coach, to get back to playing club and competitive games, extending their playing life and thereby keeping them active.

Club Name Peacehaven & Telscombe Bowls Club

Type Outdoor

County Sussex

Size Medium (80-90 members)

Website www.peacehavenbowlsclub.com

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Donyngs Indoor Bowls Club in Redhill, Surrey, has 450 members, the majority of whom fall into the older age categories. A big part of the club membership is less mobile, less acute and less responsive. and over recent years the club has become more aware of the needs of disabled bowlers. At no stage does the club allow the normal ageing process to interfere with the enjoyment and competition that the sport can bring. The club has level disabled access for all, to enable ease of entry for those in wheelchairs. There are dedicated disabled parking bays and the main doors are opened by buttons and swipe cards located at wheelchair height. There are two wheelchair ramps leading to the green and a slope access to the green surrounding area. Specialist manual wheelchairs are available and there is one battery driven chair. One of the members is a long-term wheelchair user and he provides tuition, in order to facilitate access to the sport for those who develop short or long-term mobility issues. There are four coaches within the club who have completed the Coach Bowls ‘Working with Disabled People in Bowls’ module. There are ‘hoops’ at each end of every rink to assist with access to and from the playing surface. The club has bowls of different sizes available for members to use, including sizes 000 and 0000. Additional equipment the club offers includes: bowling arms of different lengths, lifters, adjustable walking sticks, a Bowls Buddy, aids for visually impaired people and a bowls launcher. The club also encourages members to buy their own aids. The club is currently installing lights so that their deaf members can recognise when each bowling session ends. The above interventions have empowered the club’s disabled members to not only enjoy the game as players, but also as volunteers and coaches – one of them is now a Coach Bowls Level 1 coach! At the end of 2018 the club was a runner up in the Love Fisher Brown Award.

Club Name Donyngs Indoor Bowls Club

Type Indoor

County Surrey

Size Medium (400-450 members)

Website www.donyngsibc.co.uk

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In the autumn of 2017, members of the committee of Rookery Bowls Club set up Stowmarket Rookery Community Bowls Group to encourage as many groups and people with disabilities to get active, meet new people and achieve personal goals of their own through bowls. In Stowmarket and the surrounding villages there are many people with dementia, recovering from strokes, or living with visual or other impairments. The club has received numerous awards in recognition for their project and were voted as the 2018 Love Fisher Brown Award winners. The club is continually updating their programme but currently they are working in the community for five days a week promoting the bowls club as a "happy" place to be. The club:

a visits five care homes and now has group visits booked 4 - 5 times a week, well into 2019. a engages with sixty plus people per week in care homes a forms part of the local Dementia Action Alliance. a helped a visually impaired man achieve his goal of competing with sighted people. a invites and inspires all disabled people to leave their chairs and join the club to achieve their own goals personal goals! a is refurbishing their building to become a fully accessible community hub, equipped with lots of dementia friendly games, activities and films for their visitors at the community sessions.

Chris Brooks, committee member and head of recruitment and advertisement said: “I believe that our success in just over a year proves that if all bowls clubs adopted or adapted our project in their location it would also be a huge success for them too. It would provide a win-win situation for bowling clubs and disability groups and individuals throughout the country.”

“I have been blown away by the enthusiasm of the group and their appetite to create new opportunities for their local community. Through their good work they are not only reducing isolation and loneliness by bringing people together but they are also making a positive difference to physical activity levels in the area – something that has long lasting benefits for both the individual concerned and the wider community” Adam Baker, Strategic Lead for Physical Activity Directorate of Health, Wellbeing and Children’s Services Suffolk County Council

“It has been a pleasure to work with the Stowmarket Rookery Bowls club to help them establish the club to be able to provide excellent, well run opportunities for older people and people with a disability living in and around the Stowmarket area. The team is organised and motivated and passionate about providing an excellent experience for participants which helps to greatly improve holistic health and general wellbeing in all as well as addressing loneliness and social isolation issues within the area” Sue Calver, Health & Wellbeing Officer, Babergh & Mid Suffolk District Council

Club Name Rookery Bowls Club

Type Outdoor

County Suffolk

Size Small to medium (60-70 members)

Website www.rookerybowls.club

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City & County of Bristol Indoor Bowls Club is totally inclusive, and all bowling activities are open to all. The club coaches are trained in coaching disabled bowlers and, if necessary, an extended free coaching period is given to ensure they are ready to join in bowling with other members. To assist those with severe physical disabilities the club has a range of manual and electric bowls wheelchairs and has recently constructed a ramp to enable easy wheelchair access onto the playing area. For those slightly more able there are bowling arms and the new Bowls Buddy. All nine rinks have a physical rink exit helper fitted at each end and an additional central step has recently been created to provide a third point of access onto the rink. Externally there are twenty car parking spaces for blue badge holders and the club recently constructed a wheelchair ramp to provide wheelchair bowlers with a gently sloping access to the front entrance doors. City & County of Bristol Indoor Bowls Club was the first bowls club to secure the Bowls Disability Mark and strive to ensure that disabled bowlers join and enjoy the bowling and social atmosphere at the club. It acquired the equipment and special trailer to be able to provide a bowls roadshow at external events. This year the number of roadshow events the club provided increased to eight during the summer months.

Club Name City & County of Bristol IBC

Type Indoor

County Somerset

Size Large (700-750 members)

Website www.bristolindoorbowls.org.uk

One member joined the club after

coaching and has a withered left arm. He has been integrated into the umbrella

sessions and is helped by fellow bowlers who lift his bowls for him. He has been

given a total new lease of life after starting bowling and enjoys the

friendship, bowls and after bowls social activity.

Another member was “lost” in his 80’s feeling isolated. He was encouraged to join and, along with many others who otherwise would be without any

social contact, finds bowling provides a good social life as well as a sporting activity in a totally safe environment.

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Part 10: Useful contactsFor further information about disability participation or working with disabled people, please see the following list of key contacts below: Bowls Development Alliance Email/Telephone:- disability@playbowls.org / 01664 777001 English Indoor Bowling Association Ltd Email/Telephone: enquiries@eiba.co.uk / 01664 481900 Bowls England Email/Telephone: enquiries@bowlsengland.com / 01926 334609 Coach Bowls Email/Telephone: office@coachbowls.org / 01926 334610 Disability Bowls England – Paul Brown Email/Telephone: paul.brown@disabilitybowlsengland.org.uk / 07810 868015 Visually Impaired Bowls England – Adrian Mears Email/Telephone: adrianmears@msn.com / 01903 713393 British Wheelchair Bowling Association – Paul Brown Email/Telephone: paul.brown@bwba.org.uk / 07810 868015 English Amputee and Les Autres Bowls Association – Ros Otton Contact via form on the website: www.ealaba.org.uk Activity Alliance Website/Telephone: www.activityalliance.org.uk / 01509 227750 Contacts, email addresses and phone numbers correct as of October 2019.

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Sample Membership Form

Health and/or Medical Condition/s: Are any of the health issues below relevant to you?

0. No long-standing illness or disability

1. Visual (e.g. blindness or partial sight)

2. Mobility issues (e.g. difficulty walking short distances, climbing stairs, lifting & carrying objects)

3. Hearing (e.g. deafness or partial hearing)

4. Difficulty learning, concentrating or remembering

5. Mental health problems

6. Stamina or breathing difficulty

7. Social or behavioural issues (e.g. autism, attention deficit or Aspergers� Syndrome)

8. Difficulty speaking or making yourself understood

9. Dexterity difficulties (for example difficulty lifting, grasping or holding objects)

10. Long-term pain or discomfort that is always present or reoccurs from time to time

11. Other long-standing illness or disability

12. Prefer not to say

Personal Details Name:

Address:

Postcode:

Contact telephone number

Email Address:

Age:

Under 18 19 – 39 40 - 54 55 – 64 65 and over

Gender:

Male Female

Appendix 1: Sample membership form

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Are you a coach? Yes No

If yes � How long have you been coaching? Do you think of yourself as an active coach (Coaching a min of 30 minutes per week)? Yes No

What is your coaching qualification or accreditation? (Please tick the relevant box) Coach Bowls Member: EBCS Member: Coach Bowls Level 1 Qualified: EBCS Accreditation: L1: L2: L3: Coach Bowls Level 2 Qualified:

Ethnicity: Please will you tick one of the following boxes to identify your ethnic group/origin:

White Asian or Asian British Pakistani British Indian Bangladeshi Irish Other Asian background

(please specify):

Other white background (please specify): Black or Black British Mixed CaribbeanWhite & Black Caribbean AfricanWhite & Asian Other Black background (please specify):White & Black African Other mixed background (please specify): Chinese or other ethnic group: Chinese Any other (please specify):

How did you first hear about the club?

What is the main reason you joined?

What is your current or previous occupation?

Type of membership purchased:  

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