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| Level Playing Field Enews - April 2011 | www.levelplayingfield.org.uk |
Welcome to the Level Playing Field monthly Newsletter!To join Level Playing Field contact us at: info@levelplayingfield.org.uk |
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Level Playing Field Awards 2011
As a quick reminder, we are looking for your nominations (by the 30th May 2011) for the following awards: The Joseph Wratten Award: in memory of Joseph, a passionate West Ham supporter and good friend to Level Playing Field. Do you know of a disabled supporter who is a real advocate for social inclusion and equality as a sports fan? Please tell us how she or he has pushed the boundaries or highlighted the possibilities for disabled fans as a passionate and dedicated fan who follows his or her own club and/or chosen sport. Describe how this individual demonstrates that passion and committment to his/her own team and/or sport. Club/Organisation Employee of the Year Award: Club Volunteer of the Year: Do you know a club volunteer who has encouraged the participation and inclusion of disabled supporters? Please tell us how they have opened up significant areas to disabled supporters, or worked to break down barriers and stereotypes at their club or in their sport. Write to us with about 400-600 words about the person you wish to nominate. We really want to celebrate and praise those people who have made a difference. We need your nominations in by 30th April 2011 and the winners will be presented with their awards at the start of next season. If you require any further information or would like some assistance please contact Jackie via Jackie@levelplayingfield.org.uk. Level Playing Field Weeks of Action
A few clubs still have events coming up including QPR on 18th April, MK Dons on 22nd April, Liverpool FC on 23rd April. For more information on the MK Dons event please click here. With the Weeks of Action theme being Good Access = Good Business we thought you might be intrested to read an article by Rich Donovan recently published on the BBC Ouch! Website. We have posted this on the Level Playing Field website and you can view it by clicking here. Whilst we are on the subject of BBC Ouch! Disability Bitch has been busy too. Please click here to read her latest article. Hardest Hit March – 11th May 2011
This is your opportunity to join forces with other disabled people, their families and supporters to send a strong and powerful message to the Government that disabled people are being hit hard by the changes to all benefits and cuts to public services. We will gather for the march from 11.30am on the Embankment by Horse Guards Avenue (you can get a map and directions here - http://tinyurl.com/6jm5d3o). The event is being supported and promoted by a huge number of different disability organisations, including Radar, Citizens Advice, Carers UK, Scope, RNIB, RNID and many more – the impressive list of supporters will send a powerful message to the government and to the media. 10 Years for HUDSA
HUDSA chairman Neil Appleyard (pictured left) looked back on the 10 years since the organisation was first set up, using his home as a meeting point. He said: “Darran Hutchinson, who works for the local authority with people with special needs, mentioned other football clubs were setting up disabled groups and said to me at the match one day we should think about starting one up. “About 10 people came to the first meeting at my house as volunteers and the following summer, our first member, Tony Armstrong, who is still with us, was taken on board.” Since then, HUDSA has grown and now puts on a weekly disco at The Woodcutter pub, in Kingsley Avenue, for people with learning and physical difficulties, as well as providing short breaks at HUDSA’s caravan at Primrose Valley, near Scarborough. “We are not just a disabled supporters’ group any more,” said Neil, who is a former teacher. “We actually support the community. I’m immensely proud of what we have achieved so much in a short space of time.” He added that Pools’ rivals Darlington had even followed HUDSA’s lead and asked for tips in setting up their own disabled association and now have regular contact with HUDSA. Leigh Genesis Coaching Plans The club have, we understand, worked alongside Wigan Sports Development Unit, Schools Sport Partnerships and the Leigh Sports Village to deliver football to minority groups in the sport. A grant award of £1,000 from the English Federation of Disability Sport and Coalfields Regeneration Trust will enable club coaches to attend the FA’s Coaching Disabled Footballers Course. On top of this, local disability specific community sports coaches will work with club coaches to develop their skills. Club secretary Rob Atherton said: “In the next few months we will have another three coaches qualified to deliver football to those with disabilities. “Our established coaches have done very well over the last couple of years and we have over a dozen players with additional needs who play in our teams already. “This initiative will boost our ability to engage the local community, include and also offer parallel opportunities in the future”. The junior club has 30 teams playing in six leagues in the area. Arsenal Fans to the Rescue
A spokesman for First Capital Connect said: “The station is normally manned during the night. Unfortunately we had abrupt staff sickness and when there are no staff the lift has to be shut down. “The passengers hadn’t booked on our special assistance programme - had they booked we’d have been able to get the assistance to them”, adding that they were “very grateful to the passengers who did help the customer and we’re very sorry for any inconvenience caused.” Air Travel for Disabled Supporters
If you can’t beat them……join them. Become an MP
Heating for Donbass Arena
Well, we all know how cold it can be at some matches, but let’s be honest, a Ukranian winter might hold a few more problems in terms of temperature than we would normally expect. So, if global warming and record breaking cold winters continue to hit us in the UK, perhaps we will see more and more clubs in this country looking at the use of energy efficient intellectual heating systems…………….. or ‘blankets’, as we will probably continue to call them. Good Luck to Paul Smith
http://twitter.com/challenge100 http://www.justgiving.com/centrepoint-100 McKitten On The Spot
The youngsters were all chosen because they are signed up to Newcastle United Foundation’s Disability Football programme. Tom said: “He was so excited when we heard he had been invited to take part in the penalty shoot out at half time. He couldn’t sleep the night before the game. I was so proud of him when he stepped up to the spot.” Also taking part on the day were Nathan Pilling, Paul Lawson, Thomas Hutchinson Summer Hill, Owen Wright, Tom Ellis and Ryan Morton. Newcastle United Foundation’s Disability Football scheme is funded by BBC Children in Need. The programme involves school coaching sessions, after school clubs, satellite coaching camps and fixtures across Newcastle, Gateshead, North Tyneside and Northumberland. All children are welcome and to find out more contact ian.skinner@nufc.co.uk. News in Brief 1. Report Highlights Levels of Racism in Polish and Ukranian Football - A new report from a Warsaw based anti-racism group documents the number of racist and discriminatory incidents in the host countries for the 2012 European Championships. To access a copy of the report please click here. 2. Nystagmus network Open day - to find out when the next open day will be and for more information please click here. 3. DLA consultation: responses to the government response - to read more please visit the links below: http://www.dwp.gov.uk/consultations/2010/dla-reform.shtml http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/ouch
And Finally - Keep in Touch LPF takes your views very seriously and we can and will contact clubs and organisers to make sure that where there are problems, these can be resolved - where things have gone well, we'd also like to give the appropriate words of praise as well. Your views, more than any, are so important to us. You can email us at info@levelplayingfield.org.uk, telephone us on 0845 230 6237, or write to us at the following address:
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Don’t forget to get your nominations in for the first ever Level Playing Field awards. So the King’s Speech scored well at the Oscars, but here is an opportunity to recognise people who have really made a difference.
We would like to say a big thank you to all those clubs and individuals who got involved in our weeks of action which took place between 5th to 20th March. Newcastle United kicked off events on Sunday 13th February with a Disability Football Tournament. Other clubs involved included Blackburn Rovers, Wigan Athletic, Cardiff City, Dagenham & Redbridge, Doncaster Rovers, Stockport County, Swindon Town, Plymouth Argyle, Burton Albion and Northampton Town.
When does March become May? Ok, so this is no quiz question – joking aside, on 11th May, thousands of disabled people will be marching peacefully through Westminster and past Parliament to make sure that disabled people have their voices heard on key issues such as the plans to reform Disability Living Allowance and planned cuts to social care services. 
The Hartlepool United Disabled Supporters’ Association (HUDSA) is celebrating a decade of success this year.
Now news from LEIGH Genesis Juniors FC, who are undertaking a series of coaching education and development initiatives aimed at strengthening the inclusion of disabled people within their membership. 
In one of our recent Newsletters, we commented on the difficulties experienced when travelling by rail. So, it was quite ironic when we heard about the plight of Steve Penstone-Smith and wife Jo (pictured left) who is a wheelchair user. They had gotten off the train at Welwyn Garden City to use the disabled access lift at the station. Guess what……the lift had been switched off (due to staff sickness said a spokesman from First Capital Connect!). In Steve’s words, “Some bright spark had turned off all the lifts at WGC. Then two lovely blokes who had been to the Arsenal game got off the train and helped lift my wife up the stairs and out of the front entrance of the Howard Centre. I have no idea who they were but we just wanted to say thank you.” 
Many disabled people including football fans will tell you that they find travel by air to be such a traumatic and unpleasant experience that it stops them from going abroad for matches, holidays or any other reason.
Disabled people who want to become councillors or MPs will have access to a fund to help them overcome the barriers they face, under proposals published recently. So, let’s all get ourselves nominated and put Parliament back on track. Find out more by clicking .jpg)
Now hear this. The Donbass Arena, home of FC Shakhtar in the Ukraine (ok, own up – how many of you thought that was in Sheffield?) provides disabled supporters with what they describe as “ every special convenience”, including disabled parking, ramped approaches, tailor-made easy access seats and positions in the stands and separate toilets. On top of this, the Donbass Arena has now introduced a revolutionary new heating system for their disabled supporters’ seating areas. 
Paul Smith is currently on day 2 of Challenge 100. Paul will self-propel a racing wheelchair, approximately 101.4 miles from Fratton Park Stadium, Portsmouth to the Emirates Stadium, London. The challenge will take 4 days and see him complete the equivalent of almost 4 marathons, 30 miles a day for the first 3 days and 11.4 miles on the final day. He plan's to arrive at the Emirates Stadium during half-time of the Arsenal v Liverpool match on Sunday 17th April and have gained permission to complete this mammoth challenge with a lap of honour of the outside of the pitch. To keep up to date with Paul's efforts you can follow his tweets by clicking on the link below.
12 year old Chris McKitten (pictured left), who lost his leg to cancer, scored a penalty in front of a packed Gallowgate End on Saturday.v2.jpg)
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Level Playing Field: The Meridian, 4 Copthall House, Station Square, Coventry, CV1 2FL Helpline: 0845 230 6237 | Email: info@levelplayingfield.org.uk | Web: www.levelplayingfield.org.uk |