The Strategy work plan is very ambitious and is Development Officer Judy Plater covering the length and breadth of the Country: The priority areas are to build the infrastructure and capacity of the organisation to deliver its aims by enlisting and recruiting skilled and unskilled volunteers for specific roles, particularly at local and regional levels.
The 4-year bowls cycle (World Championships 2020 to 2024) funding strategy identifies the necessity of adopting a variety of fundraising methods to generate the funds to cover core costs, voluntary expenses and build income levels to underpin the direct delivery of the expanding programme of activities and to enable our members to reach their own goals over a 4 year period with the support and guidance from our team of volunteers and International coaching team.
1. This involves talking to people, groups and clubs and focuses on the following tasks:
- Raising the awareness of Disability Bowls England
- Raising the awareness of disability bowls
- Raising the awareness of adapted equipment
- Delivering taster sessions in a wide range of settings and at various events.
- Work with National Disability Sport Organisations to deliver projects including: British Blind Sport, Cerebral Palsy Sport, Dwarf Sports Association UK, Limbpower, Mencap, Special Olympics GB, UK Deaf Sport, Wheelpower.
- Work with National Disability Services/Providers to deliver projects including: The Stroke Association, MIND, Sense, Scope, Age UK, Parkinson’s etc.
- Work with the Black, Asian, and minority ethnic (BAME) community to increase awareness and the opportunities of disability bowls in general.
2. To develop local and regional activities including social opportunities, friendly matches, coaching and competitions to ensure there is local provision for all bowlers.
- Work with clubs on a local & regional level to ensure they are accessible, inclusive and approachable for a disabled bowler to join.
- Give guidance to clubs on available equipment and suggest ways to update their web site and social media pages to give clear information on facilities and opportunities.
- Promote these clubs to a wider audience highlighting their facilities and making it easier for people or groups to find their nearest accessible club thereby increasing participation.
- Once a group of clubs in an area have a number of disabled bowlers, we will develop opportunities to connect them together through social opportunities, friendly matches, coaching and competitions.
- To target the 2,096 English clubs and increase our disabled/inclusive members clubs by 10% each year.
- To connect Disability groups with their local Bowling club.
3. To continue to develop friendly, competitive and High-Performance fixtures and events.
- Increase and localise our friendly fixture programme for social members
- Add High profile fixtures to showcase DBE and maximise marketing opportunities
- Strive for DBE National Competition Finals to be played during the Bowls England and English Indoor Bowling Association National Championship finals.
- To promote and increase DBE members entering club, county, Bowls England and English Indoor Bowling Association events against able-bodied opposition.
- Support a High-Performance program to include squad selection, preparation & coaching weekends for both the Indoor & Outdoor annual Para Home Nations Championships and the International Bowls for the Disabled (IBD) World Bowls Championships 2021.
4. National and local marketing and advertising campaign to prepare for a return to the “New Normal” for disability bowls after lockdown and to explain the benefits of joining like-minded disabled people to share our bowls experience.
- Update the website to become a more disability bowls focused platform, to tell the story of our journey and to be sponsor friendly.
- Use Social Media/PR/Podcasts to put DBE front and centre in the public eye.
- Have regular disabled focus-based interviews/articles in Bowls International & World Bowls magazines.
- Introduce disability bowls into other disability focussed magazines.
- Produce a short promotional video to tell our story campaigns and showcase our major events
◦ “One Day in my Life”
◦ “A Sport for All”
◦ Para Home Nations Championships
◦ Learning (Intellectual) Disabilities Bowls Shield
◦ DBE National Finals and Annual North v South Challenge Trophy.
5. To take an active role in the Disability Steering Group(DSG) alongside Bowls England (BE), the English Indoor Bowling Association (EIBA), Bowls Development Alliance (BDA), Coach Bowls (CB) and the Activity Alliance (Formerly the English Federation of Disability Sport) which will oversee the progress and development of disability bowls in England. This Steering group has been the focal point behind all of disability bowls’ recent accomplishments, including the Advisory Guide to Disabled People’s Participation, the Bowls Disability Mark, “Supporting Inclusion” coaching module and the “Love Fisher Brown Award”.
The 2017-2021 strategic cycle presents the Disability Steering Group with an opportunity to re-evaluate its work to better meet the needs of disabled bowlers, clubs, coaches and volunteers and develop the sport into an even more inclusive environment for everyone.
The updated National Strategic Disability Action Plan will guide and direct all the steering group members’ work around disability. Its aims are to ensure the collaboration and integration of the work of all key partners towards developing bowls into a genuinely inclusive sport for all by 2021.