Level Playing Field

July 2016 E-Newsletter

Welcome to Level Playing Field

LPF is a registered Charity in England and Wales which acts as a campaigning and advisory organisation to its membership and other parties across all sports. www.levelplayingfield.org.uk

Lord Faulkner tables questions to Parliament on access for disabled fans

Lord Faulkner of Worcester and LPF Vice President has tabled 5 written questions to Parliament on access for disabled fans at sports stadia.

The written questions, for written answer, appeared on the 12th July 2016 House of Lords order paper.

Read more

Chair of EHRC - 'Disabled people still face huge barriers'

The newly appointed Chair of the Equality & Human Rights Commission, David Isaac, has spoken about the barriers that disabled people still face throughout society.

Isaac acknowledges that progress on disability rights has “stalled” and pledges it will be a priority. He speaks from experience; his brother has a disability. “It is clear,” he has said, “from both my family’s experience and the commission’s research that disabled people still come up against inexcusable barriers to participation in society.”

Read more

Government Response to the House of Lords Select Committee Report on The Equality Act 2010: The impact on disabled people

The Government has published it's response to the recommendations set out by the House of Lords Select Committee Report on The Equality Act 2010.

The report, which was published in December 2015, included recommendations around stadium accessibility and more specific guidance on reasonable adjustment for disabled people.

Joyce Cook OBE, LPF Chair said: “We will look forward to reading the Premier League’s progress report which the Disabled People’s Minister promised to make public at the end of July. More than ever, we need reassurances that the Premier League clubs intend to meet their self-imposed deadline in delivering minimum accessibility standards at each PL stadium by August 2017.”

Read more

Crown Prosecution Service reports increase in hate crimes towards disabled people in 2015/16 Hate Crime Report

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has reported an increase in hate crimes towards disabled people in their 2015/16 Hate Crime Report.

The report shows that the number of reported incidents alleging disability hate crime rose 9.5% in the year, as well as the number of prosecutions made for disability hate crime rising by 40.6% from 2014/15.

Level Playing Field General Manager, Ruth Hopkins said, "We need to be clear that disability abuse and hate crime is completely unacceptable and deeply offensive to disabled people, it is also illegal and should be treated with the same severity as any form of discriminatory abuse and hate.”
 
“Level Playing Field urges any person who is the victim or a witness to disability abuse and hate crime at a sporting event to report it to the relevant authorities and Level Playing Field is always willing to help and support individuals in this process.”

Read more

LPF recruiting for an Access & Development Officer

Level Playing Field (LPF) is seeking to appoint a full time Access and Development Officer to join the Access and Development Team.

The work will involve undertaking Access Audits and delivering disability equality training as well as helping with day to day enquiries from sports clubs and disabled fans. The successful candidate will report to the General Manager and will work closely with the rest of the staff.

The deadline for applications is 5pm on Friday 29th July 2016

More information here

News in Brief

Working Together Project - Gillingham set to establish Disabled Supporters Association

Working Together Project - Details of 2nd South Coast Regional Forum

Could a wheelchair user be a football referee?

Venture Down The Left Blog: Stadium Accessibility - A Fan’s Perspective

CAFE disabled fans survey 2016 - Remember to have your say!

Fan Comments

We are once again calling on disabled sports fans to use our Fans Comments facility to inform us of their experiences as a disabled fan.

Fans Comments are a great opportunity for fans to let us know about your matchday experience, whether good or not so good, which is used as important feedback to clubs in our aim of improving access and inclusion for disabled spectators.

To leave a Fans Comment, you can select the stadium or venue you attended from the 'Clubs/Venues' tab on the Level Playing Field homepage, scroll down to the bottom of the page and fill out the Fans Comment section.

Make sure you have your say!

Follow us on Social Media

Are you following us on Social Media yet? Stay up to date with all the latest news and developments at Level Playing Field by following us on Social Media. We update these regularly with new content and is a great way to keep up to speed with all that is happening in the world of access and inclusion.

Follow us: Twitter

Like us: Facebook

LPF Access Audits

LPF provides a professional programme of audits carried out by NRAC accredited Access Auditors with an increasing number of clubs and venue owners commissioning an LPF audit. Read more information on a LPF Access Audit and how to commission one here. 

Just Giving

Make a Charity donation online to support Level Playing Field's works. Every donation (small and large) is very much appreciated. 

Our Sponsors

LPF would like to thank the following Sponsors for their support:

The Football Foundation

Contact Us:

Address: Level Playing Field c/o CAFE, No.1 Olympic Way, Wembley, London, HA9 0NP

Helpline: 020 8621 2403

Email: info@levelplayingfield.org.uk

Find us on Facebook   Follow us on Twitter