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EFDS Talk to Me ResearchEncouraging disabled people to be active

Emma SpringEnglish Federation of Disability Sport

10 key principles to help drive participation

Drive awareness

Engage the audience

Offer support and Reassurance

1. Use the channels I already trust2. Stay local to me

3. Don’t lead with my impairment4. Talk to as many of my values as possible5. Continue to fulfil my values in new ways

6. Reassure me I’m going to fit in

8. Make it easy for me to tell you my needs9. Ensure my first experience is good 10. Encourage me via existing advocates

7. Make me feel I can do it

Use the channels I already trust:• Using disability organisations is one method – but can miss

people out• These are the channels disabled people have told us they use

– Posters in the ‘usual places’ – Word of mouth from friends and family– Google searches– Leaflets/Flyers through the door– Health care professionals– The local GP surgery– Links via Twitter and Facebook– PR in newspapers

I’m always on Twitter and Facebook- different companies and organisations often post lots of videos of events and different classes which can be so useful for you to see if you think it might be worth it.

I saw the leaflet for adapted sports in my doctors surgery . I spoke to him about it and from there I tried to find out as much as possible. Fashat

Drive awareness

Stay local to me:

Digitally localPhysically local

It was chatting to people from the disabled football organisation outside the supermarket that first pulled me in. I told them my worries and they reassured me. I’d only went to grab dinner and ended up signing up!

• Local park / green spaces• Local leisure centre• School and community

centres• Local shopping areas

• Local blogs• Local Facebook pages• Local Twitter feeds• Local online forums

Minimise the need to travel where possible. Offer things:…

There are already so many struggles when taking part without worrying about getting there

Drive awareness

Don’t lead with my impairment:

• Leading communications with images and words which talk explicitly to disability and impairment often fail to inspire or motivate disabled people– These images lack relevance and are quickly filtered out as

‘not for me’• By explicitly talking to ‘disability’ you’re turning off a

large proportion of your potential audience.– Communications and marketing need to look beyond the

impairment to appeal and motivate this audience

When I read something like that poster, for me it’s just talking to wheelchair users. Jane

It sounds a bit rubbish really, like you’re not really going to have fun Claire

Engage the audience

Don’t lead with my impairment:

• To motivate more disabled people we need to look and feel appealing and exciting

• Focus on things other than disability

Talk to as many of my values as possible:

Having fun and feeling free

Family and support systems

My health

Progressing in life

Friendship and connections

Mental strength and

wellbeing

Fulfilled Happy

Sense of self-worth

The values are the things that disabled people find important

Engage the audience

Continue to fulfil my values in new ways :

• For those who are already active, sport/activity needs to continue to fulfil values in different ways

• Sustained involvement in a sport/activity is often motivated by different values as time passes

• Activities need to consider what values they can address and how this could change over time

For me the sport has gone way beyond playing football. I’m now really active in encouraging new members into the local deaf team playing 7-a-side football every week.

Engage the audience

6. Make me feel I can do it

Drive awareness

Engage the audience

Offer support and Reassurance

Make me feel like I can do it:• People seek reassurance that activities are within their

capability– Disabled people can be less likely to consider activities

because they feel they’re beyond their capability

• People have an awareness of their own ability and lack confidence that they can participate– This feeling is sometimes greater in people living with

impairment who can feel that their limited ‘ability’ is even more pronounced and skill levels can be harder to attain in order to participate

Offer support and Reassurance

Make me feel like I can do it:

How to encourage them: • Language which suggest ‘trial’: Try, Have a go

• Words which suggest the first rung on the ability-ladder : Beginners welcome, First timers, Taster sessions

• References to ability limitations without explicitly point the finger at my disability: Zumba Gold, Limited movement, Low impact

• And a guarantee of participation: ‘We have a wide variety of adaptive equipment’, ‘We’ll guarantee we’ll get you onto a bike’

On the ad was ‘we will get you on a bike no matter what’- that made me think ‘, if they’re saying that let’s see how serious they are’, and I’m still there today! Trevor

Reassure me I’m going to fit in:

• The fear of ‘standing out’ can be more disabling than their impairment– Disabled people just want to fit in rather than ‘stand out’

and feel different

• When considering participating in new activities, this ‘wanting to fit in’ is a strong, influencing force– It’s a strong factor in what they will and won’t consider

I want the other people there to be rubbish at it. Marie

Offer support and Reassurance

Reassure me I’m going to fit in:• How to reassure people

Consider using… • Images of different ages, sizes and

abilities • Video /photos showing what the

experience is like and who attends• Case studies of others - the journey

they’ve made• Word of mouth / social networks.

• Social proofing is a powerful way to persuade someone to try as it does the vetting and influencing in one hit

Avoid using…• Images of elite sports men /women

• Although aspirational, they’re less effective in direct comms as hard to identify with

• Images of people in team kit • Can feel exclusive. • Gives a sense of standing out

before they’ve even joined

Being able to see it in action, see different types of people taking part so you feel more comfortable. Maria

Offer support and Reassurance

8. Make it easy for me to tell you my needs

Drive awareness

Engage the audience

Offer support and Reassurance

Make it easy for me to tell you my needs

• If instructors are aware of a disabled person’s needs they can plan their sessions better and the participants are more likely to have an enjoyable experience

• Offer methods for instructors to hear specific needs without singling people out and provide reassurance that they by declaring their needs, they won’t be excluded…

Offer support and Reassurance

Invite new members to share needs ahead of the session• An open dialogue, a chance to

discuss honestly• With someone who understands

and can advise on participation in the session

Offer more private ways of sharing information• Fill in a form ahead of the session• One-to-one call or email with the

instructor before the session• A chat with a member of staff when

they arrive

My trainer knows my limitations. He is creative in how he approaches my training. He’ll revise the more difficult activities to make them work for me, without losing the competition I love.

Ensure my first experience is good:

• An uncomfortable or awkward first experience can put people off coming back again

• ‘First experience’ includes– Arrival and getting there– All staff– Going to the changing rooms– Meeting everyone for the first time– Meeting the ‘instructor’– The suitability of the class for their skill level

I went swimming and just getting from reception to the changing room was so hard. There was no one there to help me. It really put me off gong back. Alasdair

Offer support and Reassurance

Ensure my first experience is good:

Before During After

Welcome email to new members outlining what to expect, what to bring etc

Plan a session to allow for a range of abilities. - adapt activities for different needs

Ensure all staff are equally welcoming and helpful. • Good customer service

(and common sense) from everyone

An official welcome and introduction for new members to the rest of the group

• Involve other participants

Follow up phone call/email after the session to check in and invite any feedback

A great first experience means people are more likely to come back. Make sure:

Offer support and Reassurance

Encourage me via your existing advocates :

Existing members to become trainers and instructors

Buddy systems. Assign new members to existing members to look out for and offer support if needed

Open days/ event days- where current participants attend and demonstrate their enthusiasm and be available to answer questions new members might ask

Offer support and Reassurance

Emma SpringResearch and Insight ManagerEnglish Federation of Disability Sportespring@efds.co.uk 07817 787 542www.efds.co.uk@Eng_Dis_Sport