Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games
Introduction
Aim: to highlight people with disabilities experiences of
volunteering at the London 2012 Paralympic Games
Structure
• Issues framing the research
• Research context
• Preliminary findings
• Conclusion
Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games
Issues framing the research
“…negative stereotypes such as being
regarded as a dependent person, an object of
charity, an object of ridicule or pity”
“…people with disabilities seen as helpless
victims.”
“Disabled people were clearly not viewed as
those who are themselves involved
in volunteering and campaigning.”
Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games
Issues framing the research
…ensure that disabled people
are fully included in the volunteer
programme
“…ensure that disabled people are fully included in the volunteer
programme” “Accessible and inclusive
Games”
“…disabled people will make up 5% of the 70,000 volunteers”
Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games Issues framing the research
Despite the importance of volunteers in staging
sports events, volunteers with disabilities are
invisible from studies researching sport event
volunteering.
Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games Research Context
• London 2012 Paralympic Games
• 23,000 volunteers
• Longitudinal qualitative semi-
structured interviews with
volunteers
– Before (25 interviews)
– During (16 interviews)
– After (25 interviews)
– 12 months after (23 interviews)
• 15 volunteers completed all four
interviews
Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games
Preliminary findings
Mackenzie Freya Jina
Volunteered at Olympics and Paralympics
Volunteered at Olympics and Paralympics
Volunteered at Paralympics
Sports statistician at tennis/wheelchair Tennis
Event services at basketball/wheelchair
basketball
Print distribution
Amputee Autoimmune Disorder Visual impairment
Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games
Preliminary findings
1. Unproblematic journey to being
a volunteer
2. An inequitable volunteer
experience
3. A disempowered Gamesmaker
Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games
Theme 1 : An unproblematic journey to
becoming a Gamesmaker (volunteer)
“…having workbooks and things transcribed into accessible formats
that’s the only thing really and just making adaptations which is blue
badge parking you know around the UDAC facilities and my
mobilisation co-ordinator from the Technology team has been amazing
and helpful as well” (Jina)
“So on the application you know they did ask me about my disability
and I did make a note of it that I am disabled and I listed that it’s a
below the knee disability and it affects me in this way”
(Mackenzie)
Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games
Theme 2 : An inequitable volunteer experience
“He went we’ll put you here and he basically put me on a chair in a
corridor with a door behind me so basically on my own for ten hours. I
thought I can’t sit here like this…I really, really hated that really badly”
(Freya)
“There was a bus that finishes at Eton Manor so you could catch it if you
have mobility problems…I checked with the driver to make sure it goes
past Eton Manor and he said no we’ve stopped going there. I called the
number for workforce and said look you know I’m stranded, I need
some transport to get to Eton Manor…by the time I get there I’m late for
my shift. You would think transport would be accessible.”
(Mackenzie)
Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games
Theme 3 : A disempowered Gamesmaker
“I can do a ten hour shift. I just need to know that if I need to sit down, I
can sit down without having to continually ask somebody…I’ve said it
about twenty times and you’re making me feel like I’m being awkward
and I was getting upset about it…are you really going to make me go up
to somebody everyday and say I’m disabled?” (Freya)
“Well, for future shifts now is what I have to do, I have to call the
workforce people here and literally 20 minutes before I am due to be
somewhere tell them oh yeah I’m 20 minutes away can you send a
buggy for me and they’ll send somebody” (Mackenzie)
Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games
Conclusion
• Volunteers faced problems in carrying out their volunteer
role.
• Replicate the issues faced by people with disabilities in
society more broadly.
However…
• Once these issues had been resolved volunteers with
disabilities did enjoy their experience at the London 2012
Paralympic Games.
Volunteering, Disability and the
London 2012 Paralympic Games
References
Department for Culture Media and Sport (2010). London 2012: A Legacy for Disabled
People. Setting New Standards, Changing Perceptions. London, DCMS.
Office for Disability Studies (2011). London 2012: A Legacy for Disabled People. London,
Office for Disability Studies.
Patterson, I. and Pegg, S. (2009) Serious Leisure and People with Intellectual Disabilities:
Benefits and Opportunities. Leisure Studies, 28(4), pp.387-402.
Roker, D., Player, K. and Coleman, J. (1998) Challenging the Image: The Involvement of
Young People with Disabilities in Volunteering and Campaigning. Disability & Society,
13(5), pp.725-741.
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