Games did not help disabled in long term, says Scope
MORE THAN a quarter of disabled people believe the London Paralympics has failed to have a positive legacy, new research suggests.
A survey by the charity Scope found 38 per cent of disabled people felt attitudes had not improved towards them since 2012.
Some 28 per cent said the Paralympics had not delivered a “positive legacy for disabled people”, while three quarters (75 per cent) had not seen improvements in the way members of the public talk to them.
One in six (16 per cent) said they had been spoken to in a patronising way since London 2012, with the figure rising to a third (33 per cent) for disabled people aged 18 to 34.
The poll of more than 1,000 disabled adults was commissioned by Scope for the fifth anniversary of the Games.
The charity’s chief executive Mark Atkinson said the findings were “incredibly disappointing” following the “tremendous success” of the London Paralympics.
“We knew that you don’t change attitudes in a fortnight, and a lasting legacy was going to be harder to achieve, but now disabled people are telling us that public attitudes and awareness haven’t changed – and in some cases have got worse,” he said.
“The Government needs to address the issues that matter most and commit to a cross-government approach to disability. We need action on employment, financial security and social care support for disabled people.”
British wheelchair tennis player Jordanne Whiley, who won a bronze medal at the 2012 Paralympics, said: “The negative attitudes disabled people face, the extra costs to live an independent life – all issues that need to be addressed here and now.
“The success of the Games was unprecedented, but it’s now all of our responsibility to make sure we keep up the legacy it created and make sure disabled people have a voice all of the time, not once every four years.”
A number of Yorkshire athletes competed in the 2012 games including Leeds swimmer Leeds swimmer Claire Cashmore, Doncaster wheelchair fencer Craig McCann and Rawdon cyclist David Stone.