Great Britain Wheelchair Basketball

The Great Britain Wheelchair Basketball Association (GBWBA)

is the governing body for wheelchair basketball in the United Kingdom. GBWBA is a registered charity and is the representative body of wheelchair basketball in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

Wheelchair Basketball is the largest and one of the blue ribbon leading Paralympic Sport, with its roots going back to the late 40's. Although initially a rehabilitation and recreational activity for spinal cord injured patients, it quickly developed into a competitive sport and today the National Wheelchair Basketball League consists of 65 teams playing in 9 Divisions.

Wheelchair Basketball embraces a wide range of disabilities including paraplegics, spina bifida, amputees, brittle bones, cerebral palsy and multiple sclerosis. Able bodied players are eligible to play in divisions 1, 2, 3 and 4, junior league and women's league. Virtually everyone who can conceivably play wheelchair basketball is encouraged to do so.

Objectives of GBWBA

To promote community participation in healthy recreation in particular by the provision of facilities for the playing of wheelchair basketball in Great Britain.

To relieve those persons who have a severe permanent physical disability of one or both lower extremities who are resident in Great Britain or eligible to play for Great Britain by encouraging and promoting the sport of wheelchair basketball with the object of improving conditions of life and to assist in their integration into society.

Wheelchair Basketball and Volunteering

Young Officials Project

The Young Officials Project, supported by V (the charity changing the face of volunteering for 16 to 25 year olds in England) and United Utilities, has seen British Wheelchair Basketball join forces with the Youth Sport Trust to develop opportunities for young people to take their first step towards becoming sporting officials.

The Young Officials programme is designed to support National Governing Bodies such as BWB to establish a structure for the development of Young Officials throughout England and embed opportunities for young volunteers.

Since September 2007, the Young Officials programme has driven the development of officiating for young people in partnership with 16 National Governing Bodies of Sport (NGB), training and deploying over 8,000 young people in local and school competition.

For more information please visit: www.youthsporttrust.org

Or contact: Matt Gibbs (Young Official Development Officer), 01509 279900 / m.gibbs@gbwba.org.uk

Wheelchair Basketball in Schools and Education

Change for Life

Change 4 Life is a government initiative designed to encourage people to lead healthier lifestyles through taking care over the food they eat and taking part in physical activity. The programme has now been expanded out into schools, with dedicated Change 4 Life clubs being set in a variety of locations up and down the country in 6 main sports.

Wheelchair basketball has been selected as one of the 6 sports alongside Badminton, Table Tennis, Handball, Volleyball, Fencing and Boccia.

Coaching in Schools

In order to try and combat the lack of Wheelchair Basketball Equipment in schools, GBWBA have developed a number of inclusive and adaptive games to aid the delivery of the sport to all abilities.

Inclusive Zone Basketball

Inclusive Zone Basketball is a 4 a-side game, developed to enable players who cannot participate in a full game of basketball to enjoy playing the game. The zones used enable players to be matched in their abilities within these zones.

The small-sided teams and adapted playing area enable girls and boys, both disabled* and non-disabled, to participate in a fun game of basketball. The game takes into account principles of the ‘Social Model’ of disability, and lends itself to the modified and parallel sections of the ‘Inclusion Spectrum’ The game links many of the strands of the National Curriculum for Physical Education, ‘games activities’, Key Stages 1, 2, 3 and 4, and can provide cross-curricular links with Science, PSHE and Citizenship, Literacy and Numeracy.

Women's Programme

The GBWBA are very proud of their Women's programme.

The growth of women playing the sport means they can run a Women's League which consists of two divisions. To ensure that the women's programme continues to develop and grow the GBWBA now employ a Women's Development Office.

For more information about how to get involed or to learn more about our Women's league clubs please contact Helen Goss on 01509 279900 or email: h.goss@gbwba.org.uk