Access and Inclusion (Disability) Programs

At the Y, we are committed to creating access and inclusion opportunities so that people, of all abilities, can participate. We want our participants to have meaningful access to sport and recreation, to improved quality of life and connection with their community.

Over the FY22/23, we had over 64,000 participations across our access and inclusion programs.

Some of our many programs include:

Y Whittlesea

All Abilities Camps – offers the chance for everyone to experience active recreation. Holiday Programs – supports individuals to achieve personal goals during the school holidays through fun, engaging and educational activities.

Early Years Engagement (EYES) Support – draws from our expertise in both the disability and early learning sectors, to identify where early intervention is required, and to work in partnership with families and agencies to support children to reach their full potential.

Group Programs – we also provide programs offering social support, swimming lessons, basketball, gymnastics and NDIS support.

GymAbility and SwimAbility (Y NSW) – our GymAbility program gives people with disability the chance to try gymnastics in a fun and safe environment. SwimAbility offers specialised swimming lessons for people with a disability.

RAID (Recreational Activities for People with Intellectual Disability) Basketball (Y Canberra) – RAID is a program for people with an intellectual disability. It provides participants with an opportunity to be part of a sporting team and to enjoy not only the game itself but the friendship, pride and confidence that come from being part of a team. The YMCA RAID program has been running since 1984 and some of our participants have been involved for over 20 of those years.

Special Olympics swimming squad (Hobart) – training aspiring Paralympians, who can swim independently of an aid.

MYDE (Mixed Youth Disability Engagement program) (Y WA) – an education support and recreation program, run in partnership with Department of Education staff, supporting the wellbeing of year 7 – 12 students attending the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Community High School.

Our NDIS programs
We offer a range of supportive NDIS programs, including: Community Inclusion program (Bundaberg) – as a registered NDIS provider, our Community Inclusion program empowers people with a disability to go about their daily lives and access and participate in our wider community.