Ms Ger McTavish:

Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach agus le baill den choiste as an deis labhairt leo inniu. Is mór an phribhléid dom a bheith anseo chun plé a dhéanamh ar an obair a bhfuil Spórt Éireann ag tabhairt faoi ó thaobh rochtain do dhaoine faoi mhíchumas. On behalf of Sport Ireland, I thank the committee for having me here today to discuss our work on participation in community life for persons with disabilities.

Sport Ireland is the non-regulatory statutory body with responsibility for the development of sport in Ireland. Under the Sport Ireland Act 2015, we are tasked with: developing participation in sport and high-performance sport; eliminating doping in sport; developing coaching; developing guidelines on the protection of children in sport; and developing the Sport Ireland campus. Sport Ireland's vision is an active Ireland where everyone can enjoy the lifelong benefits of sport and physical activity. Disability is a key pillar of our strategy, with disability inclusion at the forefront of initiatives.

On that point, in November 2024, Sport Ireland published Disability Inclusion in Sport: Statement of Commitment and Action. The latter highlights five clear statements of commitment to change, namely communications, access, capacity and leadership across the key areas of funding, representation, education and facilities. My role as disability in sport lead for the organisation emerged from this plan and was developed to deliver upon the actions set out. There are more than 39 actions in the policy.

By way of example as to how this role is progressing the area of disability in sport, since my appointment last February, we have engaged extensively with Departments, national governing bodies, NGBs, local sports partnerships, LSPs, and funded bodies to progress all areas of disability in sport. We have advanced accessibility audits through Active Disability Ireland, training on an e-learning portal and workshops and policy development, through the European Accessibility Act, the Irish Sign Language Act 2017 and the Irish language Act. We have supported major projects such as the vision impaired sports hub in Portlaoise, grassroots transitions with Paralympics Ireland and board development with Deaf Sport Ireland. We have also initiated disability research collaborations with the CP-Life Research Centre and the Council of Europe and co-designed disability education and training updates with Sport Ireland Coaching and Active Disability Ireland. This is just one way of demonstrating how Sport Ireland is acting on its commitment to people with disabilities in sport.

Sport Ireland provides direct, regular financial support to over 100 sports organisations, including 65 NGBs, ten other funded bodies and 29 local sports partnerships. It is our ambition that LSPs and NGBs work collaboratively and with an integrated approach to service the whole community. This is delivered through multiple funding streams, including core, dormant accounts and European funding.

Our work is led by research and data, and identifies the positive impact sport can have and where further work is required. In 2024, the Irish Sports Monitor found that 49% of the adult population regularly participated in sport. This represented more than a 2% increase since 2023.

However, active sports participation for people with disabilities is not growing at the same rate as that for people without disabilities, which is a concern for us. The disability gradient has increased to 22 percentage points, up from 20 percentage points in 2023. Despite significant investment in sport for people with disabilities, the disability gradient is increasing due to the growing number of older people with disabilities. There is a need for extensive partnerships and investment beyond the capacity of sport alone to address this issue.

In collaboration with NGBs, local sports partnerships and other funded organisations, Sport Ireland has developed a range of programmes aimed at promoting accessibility and participation for individuals with disabilities. These initiatives provide meaningful opportunities for individuals and their families to engage in sports and physical activities, fostering social inclusion, personal development and community engagement. There are many examples across the sport sector of programmes and opportunities that have been adapted and designed to specifically support and enable participation by people with disabilities. If members are seeking further information about programmes available in their constituencies that are not covered in the briefing document shared with the committee and in the opening statement, please reach out and we will be happy to engage further on any questions. I am joined by my colleague Paul McDermott. We look forward to members' questions. Ultimately, Sport Ireland works to empower the sector to deliver targeted initiatives aimed at increasing participation across all cohorts of society, including those with disabilities.