ALICE WRIGHT - TUTOR

Alice Wright Typhoo Sports for All Tutor

"As the mother of a disabled child I was fully aware of the barriers to participation in all aspects of society but had also had the good fortune to experience the thrills and delights of achievement in sport by the disabled people I had worked with.”

I am 54 years old and live in Disley, a village on the Cheshire/Derbyshire border about half way between Buxton and Manchester. My day job is as a Further Education lecturer at Buxton College of FE where I teach sport, literacy and numeracy.

My first experiences of tutoring in sport were in 2000 when I became a TOPS Community trainer which I found great fun because of the fantastic people from all sorts of backgrounds who wanted to learn about the basics of coaching sport.

As a child I swam competitively from a very early age, was in all the sports teams at school and at 16 was 5th in the English Schools 400 metres final – my highest achievement to date in sport! I was passionate about sport and dreamed of being a PE teacher but my parents had other ideas and sent me off to University to study Law. Now, my main activity as a participant is walking/jogging with the dog every morning and training to keep up my pool life guard status. I also coach and manage the college Boccia team and our local disability swimming team – High Peak Sharks.

I had been looking for an opportunity to be involved with EFDS for some time and had my name down with them for information about training courses. I jumped at the chance to apply for the Typhoo Sports for All tutor training as I am very much involved in the development of disability sport in my area as secretary of the local disability sports forum and member of the community sports network.

As the mother of a disabled child I was fully aware of the barriers to participation in all aspects of society but had also had the good fortune to experience the thrills and delights of achievement in sport by the disabled people I had worked with. I have great respect for the work and ethos of the EFDS and was delighted to be offered the chance to become one of their tutors. I felt that I had considerable experience and knowledge to pass on and had always thoroughly enjoyed my tutoring experiences in Boccia and inclusive sport to date.

Now, some six months on, I have tutored courses in Barnsley, Loughborough, York, Burnley, Manchester and Stoke and have simply had a great time meeting so many other coaches, making links with other swimming teams, and learning from the wealth of experience and expertise they bring to the courses. As a tutor I have grown in confidence in my own knowledge and experience, reflected on my own style of delivery and, I hope, passed on some useful information and enthusiasm. Those on the brink of getting involved in sport for disabled people have been most interested in communication and terminology, legislation and the implications of various disabilities for practical coaching activities. Many who are keen to get started want to know how to promote and market their sessions. Those who already have some experience in disability sport are keen to network and keep absolutely up to date with current practice.

I have had 50 years experience in sport now, from very young participant, to competitor, mother, spectator, coach and now tutor and would love another 50 of the same! Sport is about living life to the full, meeting people, being healthy, taking part and I believe everyone should have the opportunity to experience that, whoever they are, and to push their own barriers to the very limit. Typhoo and EFDS together are really helping to open up opportunities for disabled people to enjoy sport like anyone else, as participants, coaches and tutors, by raising awareness through their courses and marketing campaign and I am proud to be a part of that."

How do you like your tea?

"I like hot, strong, tasty tea with very little milk."

First memories

"That lovely blue stripy knitted tea cosy with a bobble on top, granny’s china tea set with the gold rim, the plop of sugar cubes and the clink of the little silver spoon."