League's ability to lead the way to inclusion

When you offer people with disabilities the right opportunities and environment, they thrive, engage, perform, and succeed! Let’s put this assumption to the test using an example drawn from the world of sport and see how that can manifest in workplaces.

The Gold Coast Titans are providing the only Physical Disability Rugby League team playing opportunity for people with a disability in Queensland. The program is called “LeagueAbility” and it tackles the very prevalent issue of enabling people with a disability to access participation in sport, particularly in team environments. In the five years the Program has been running it has seen a 425% increase in participation numbers showing the importance of providing genuine engagement, and opportunities for inclusion within the community. The learnings here are simple! If a competitive, high performing league of professional athletes and a sports competition of the most physically demanding skillset can adjust its practices and environment to offer inclusive opportunities, any workplace should be able to do so!

What can we take away from this example to create inclusive workplaces? In collaboration with the Titans, Dr Wayne Usher from Griffith University and Professor Wicker from Bielefeld University, we put our energies toward conducting research that would offer empirical evidence on the value for money of the LeagueAbility Program. The LeagueAbility Program’s impact outside the direct virtue of sport showcases the benefits of offering inclusive places for people with disabilities and how a sports program can, in fact, act as an exemplar of creative solutions for any workplace.

Indicatively, inclusive environments result in ‘gaining respect from others’, ‘learning how to de-stress’, ‘developing critical thinking’, ‘dealing with feelings of success or defeat’ and ‘improving self-regulation (e.g., controlling emotions)’. Importantly, inclusive environments ‘improve employment chances’ and ‘opportunity to connect with potential employers’. The impact of the program and what it represents for the wider world and workforce is mapped across 4 key areas.

• Social capital: by way of enjoying trustworthy interaction and cooperation with the people in my community (Mean - 6.06*).
• Collective identity: a strong sense of belonging to the community or group where I live or work (Mean - 5.75)
• Well-being: feeling good about physical and mental health and social interactions (Mean - 5.76)
• Human capital: having the necessary knowledge, skills and competencies to develop as a person  (Mean - 5.98)

Besides inclusive environments, another building block for success is having ambassadors. The NRL player ambassadors regularly visit training to coach, mentor and empower the athletes which make up the Program. It is through these ambassadors and alignment with the Gold Coast Titans brand which has enabled the Program to offer a real sense of connectedness, inclusion, and increased community awareness. This project shows how exercise and involvement in sport can offer a positive experience and impact throughout the community, promoting inclusiveness for people with disability. Importantly, this study contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals of equity, health and wellbeing, economic participation, and justice. Inclusive environments, be it in sports or elsewhere,  improving people's lives, their ambitions, their employability, their mental and physical health, their confidence and their contribution to the economy.

To further develop the Program and roll-out it to a larger geographical area, we needed to use technologies to build efficiencies around the need for education and resources. A collaboration with Playbk is set to provide a blueprint for Rugby League clubs across Queensland to successfully start inclusive and accessible rugby league programs. The innovative, online educational program will make those opportunities a reality for thousands of Queenslanders and then other States and Territories. This innovation focuses on breaking down the barriers, by providing an educational platform aimed at upskilling and increasing our volunteer base of coaches and allow for increased levels of NRL participation amongst Australians with a disability. Further to this, the online platform will draw a much larger number of fans, participants, and engagement to help grow the program.

The expansion of the LeagueAbility Program to a “National Rugby League Competition for People with Disabilities” presents a significant opportunity in the promotion of inclusion of people with disabilities, as well as expand the impact and promote positive changes throughout Australian communities and  workplaces.

The world of sports is a microcosm of life. It teaches us valuable lessons. The LeagueAbility Program  suggests that even at the most odd of places - such as professional sports - environments can be designed to break down attitudinal barriers facing people with disability. As a blueprint, it presents a significant opportunity in developing greater acceptance of diversity in the workplace, and to build employer confidence in establishing inclusive workplaces.

Associate Professor Popi Sotiriadou has combined her passion for sport management with research that advances the ways sport organisations and other providers advance successful sport development policies, programs, events/competitions and practices. Her research has had a significant impact on the ways sport organisations attract, retain and nurture participants, athletes, coaches, and volunteers in the sport industry with the aim to foster health, social, and economic benefits. Practices for inclusive physical activity opportunities for people with disabilities and women has been a focal point of Dr Sotiriadou’s research.   Contact Associate Professor Popi Sotiriadou or visit the Titans' page for details on LeagueAbility.