Northern Ireland: Disability Sport in a Shared Space

This chapter will provide an in-depth view of sport for people with disabilities in Northern Ireland from policy to practice levels. The predominant stakeholders governing access to sport for people with disabilities include the Department of Communities (DoC), Sport Northern Ireland, National and Provincial Governing Bodies of Sport (both mainstream and disability focused), Local Councils, Disability Sport NI, Paralympics GB & Ireland, as well as the Higher Education Sector and their partner agencies. Current disability sport policy stems mainly from the Sport Matters: The Northern Ireland Strategy for Sport and Physical Recreation, 2009–2019 and Active Living: No Limits 2016–2021. Across Northern Ireland, a number of agencies support delivery of policies at regional and local levels. Support is given to regional/local disability sport inclusion staff to support such agencies. This chapter on Northern Ireland will outline the ecosystem of sport for people with disabilities, disaggregated participation, moderating factors for participation, as well as the instruments and methods used in data collection. A focus will be placed on the facilitators and barriers that impact sport participation in this region. Concluding remarks will point to successes and considerations for addressing the gradient that still exists between those with and without disability in Northern Ireland.