Irish Wheelchair Association

The Irish Wheelchair Association is a voluntary organisation in the Republic of Ireland, founded in 1960. The IWA is a charity organisation with over 1000 volunteers aiding the disabled. Although broadly a disability group they are set up to aid mobility impaired people.

External links

* [http://www.iwa.ie/ Irish Wheelchair Association official website]

The Irish Wheelchair Association (IWA) was formed some 40 years ago. In the 1960s, services for people with physical disability were meagre, sporadic or in some cases non-existent. There was no legislation. Public attitudes of charity or silence prevailed. Near total inaccessibility of buildings, public services and facilities was the norm. From this beginning, IWA gradually began to address the variety of needs and injustices facing people with physical disability.

From the outset IWA services were driven by the needs of members. A 'social model' of service delivery was adopted. Services were community-based. A central goal was the integration of people with disabilities into the community.

Underpinning service delivery and the progress of the organisation was the massive amount of time unselfishly contributed by many volunteers throughout the country. Without this, most services would not have been delivered.

By the 1970s, IWA had over 1000 members and had initiated services that included: Occupational Therapy; Holidays; Transport; Wheelchair Sales, Repair and Loans; Social Activities; and a Driving School. Areas such as Access, Education, Housing, Training and Employment and Residential Care had been identified as requiring services. The 1980s and 1990s saw the development of Day Resource Centres, Independent Living Apartments and provision of Care Attendants. Most recently, IWA has developed Peer Counselling services, improved Transport and Assisted Living Services and implemented many community-based projects.

Today, IWA members can be justly proud of the advances in service delivery and the relative improvements in public facilities. Many of these would simply not have happened without IWA. IWA is now a major service provider, an effective lobbyist of government and decision makes and a strong advocate for the rights of people with a disability. With over 20,000 members, IWA continues to grow.

History

The Irish Wheelchair Association Sports Centre has been in operation since 1981 and is the National Sporting headquarters for IWA – Sport. In its initial days of operation the facility housed a large sports hall with changing facilities.In 2002 the IWA received funding of nearly €1,000,000 to extend the sports hall into a fully operational sports centre. The Oliver Murphy Sports and Recreation Centre was opened in December 2003 and now consists of a dual use gym, restaurant, therapy rooms, administration offices and changing areas.The sports centre again received funding from the Department of Arts Sport and Tourism in 2005 of €85,000 and to compliment the state of the art sports centre extension it was decided to refurbish the sports hall. An international standard sports floor, retractable seating and electronic basketball units were all installed.This state of the art facility now leads the way in accessible sporting facilities and it actively promotes full inclusion and participation among all sectors of the community. A wide range of users now use the facility such as IWA Sport members and clubs, local schools, local soccer clubs, Sports National Governing bodies and a national league basketball club. Rachel txxx