The Minister for the Olympics and Paralympics, Tessa Jowell, has launched London 2012: A legacy for disabled people, which aims to use the Olympic and Paralympic Games as a catalyst to boost the numbers of disabled people participating in sport, as well as to improve transport systems, provide better employment opportunities and change attitudes. As part of the scheme, Sport England has announced £3.5 million of funding to the English Federation of Disability Sport (EFDS) to help it deliver a new strategy to increase participation and opportunities for disabled people.
Sport England also announced that it will be making £2 million of targeted National Lottery funding available, by application, to nine disability sports organizations including: British Blind Sport, Mencap Sport, Wheelpower and the Special Olympics. A further £8 million of National Lottery funding has also been ring-fenced by Sport England for investment in sport for disabled people over the next two
years. Tessa Jowell said: ‘We want the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games to showcase a Britain without barriers. By working to increase sports participation, improve employment opportunities amongst disabled people and develop a greater appreciation of disability issues in society, our legacy plan for disabled people aims to make a real difference to the way disabled people live their lives every day.’