Information about sports and physical activities for disabled people
Access to leisure facilities and social activities is essential for many disabled people and their families. It’s not a luxury.
This page provides information on discounts, free resources and accessible services from disability-friendly organisations to help you get active.
On this page:
- Accessible exercises you can try at home
- Sports opportunities for disabled people
- Exercise classes and activities for disabled people
- Cycle hire for disabled people
- Disability-friendly walking and rambling
Accessible exercises you can try at home
Of course, the easiest and cheapest way to exercise is at home. There are lots of online classes now available to help you do this.
Below is a list of online resources for children, adults and families.
Remember, it’s important that you choose suitable exercises, adapt exercises to your needs and go at the right pace for you or your child.
So, before you start any workouts, it’s best to speak to a healthcare professional. For example, a physiotherapist or occupational therapist, or ask your GP for a referral to a specialist who can advise you.
Sense Active
Here at Sense, the Sense Active team is always working on new ways to make sport and physical exercise inclusive for everyone.
Via our activity finder, you can explore all the activities we have available for you to try at home. From seated yoga or dance to table tennis, there’s something for everyone!
Activity Alliance
What is Activity Alliance?
Activity Alliance is a charity that supports disabled people to find opportunities to get active.
What activities are available online?
Activity Alliance: At home gives a list of useful exercise advice, workouts, videos and activity guides to help everyone move more at home or when going outside for regular activity.
Better Health (NHS)
What is Better Health?
Better Health brings together all of the NHS’s tips, tools and apps in one place to help families make small, simple changes to kickstart and improve health across a full range of activities.
What activities are available online?
Better Health has lots of accessible activities to keep disabled children and young people active. You can start off by choosing activities your child is interested in and adapt them.
Sports opportunities for disabled people
Active Partnerships (England)
Forty-two Active Partnerships across England aiming to transform lives through sport and physical activity and create the conditions for an active nation.
Active Partnerships focuses on inactive people and under-represented groups who will benefit the most from an active lifestyle.
Learn more about Active Partnerships.
British Blind Sport
Helps blind and partially sighted children and adults to get active and play sport, from grassroots activities to the Paralympic Games.
Find out more about British Blind Sport.
Cerebral Palsy (CP) Sport
A national disability sport organisation and charity that encourages people with cerebral palsy to live more active lives through sport and physical activities.
CP Sport also provides a range of support services and uses its voice to influence change for the benefit of disabled people.
Get more information on Cerebral Palsy (CP) Sport.
Disability Sport Wales
Supports over a million grass roots opportunities for disability-specific and inclusive sport per year.
Learn more about Disability Sport Wales.
Dwarf Sports Association UK
Making regular sporting opportunity accessible and enjoyable to anyone and everyone with dwarfism in the United Kingdom, regardless of their race, colour, ethnic origin, gender, location, sporting ability or financial support.
Find out more about Dwarf Sports Association UK.
LimbPower
Supports amputees, people with limb difference and their families to bridge the gap between hospital rehabilitation and community and school engagement to rebuild lives and improve physical, social and mental wellbeing.
Parasport
There’s a sport or activity out there for everyone.
Parasport highlights inclusive activities and one-off events that able-bodied and disabled people can do together, hoping to inform and inspire people to discover something new.
Special Olympics Great Britain
A non-profit organisation and largest provider of year-round sports training and athletic competition in summer and winter sports for children and adults of all abilities, including learning disabilities.
Find out more about Special Olympics Great Britain.
Sport England
Invests in sport and physical activity to make it a normal part of life for everyone in England, regardless of who they are, where they come from or ability to pay.
Find out more about Sport England.
Sport England, the English Federation of Disability Sport and Disability Rights UK have jointly published Being Active: An everyday guide for people living with an impairment or health condition.
Click here to download the full Being Active guide.
UK Deaf Sports
Improves and sustains access to people who are deaf or have hearing loss in sports and physical activity, and supports our current athletes in their sport.
Find out more at UK Deaf Sports.
WheelPower
Based in Stoke Mandeville, the home of the Paralympic movement, WheelPower has been providing opportunities in sport for people with physical impairments for more than 70 years.
Exercise classes and activities for disabled people
Get Out Get Active
Supports disabled and non-disabled people to enjoy being active together. Aims to make activity more inclusive, support people to move more and encourage them to lead an active and healthy lifestyle.
Find out more about Get Out Get Active.
Get Yourself Active
Transforming attitudes and perceptions of disability and physical activity by informing, empowering and supporting disabled people and others.
Visit the Get Yourself Active website.
Cycle hire for disabled people
Charlotte’s Tandems
Charlotte’s Tandems lends tandems and trailer bikes to people of any age, disability or special need for free.
You can collect the tandems from their bases around the UK.
Find out more on the Charlotte’s Tandems website.
Disability-friendly walking and rambling
Accessible Countryside for Everyone
Provides information and promotes accessibility to leisure in the countryside of England – primarily aimed at those with mobility issues, their carers and families.
Find out more about Accessible Countryside for Everyone.
Disabled Ramblers
A small charity working across England and Wales to help make the countryside more accessible to people with limited mobility.
Also campaigns to raise awareness of the needs of people with limited mobility and organises a national programme of rambles for people who use mobility scooters.
Check out the Disabled Ramblers.
This content was last reviewed in July 2023. We’ll review it again next year.