Many of us are inspired by the incredible talent and determination of the world's best athletes in the Paralympics, that isn't enough. 

Across sports organisations, physical activity providers, the Government, Sport England and others, the focus must continue to be on tackling inequalities.

The findings from our latest Annual Disability and Activity Survey show clearly that the barriers to sport and physical activity for disabled people remain. 

Long-term barriers are exacerbated and there are growing issues, such as cost of living, mental wellbeing, and representation.

Disabled people were again more likely to say they wanted to be more active compared to non-disabled people (77 per cent vs 54 per cent). This remains consistent to previous years, showing an ongoing unmet need that we need sport and activity providers to address in their own plans.

We appreciate organisations have been hit hard too, through financial instability coming out of a national crisis. 

We have seen some great success come from providers who are determined to make a difference for disabled people’s inclusion. 

Meaningful change will only come if we address the issues we have and embed inclusive practice in strategy through to delivery.

We continue to listen to disabled people’s experiences and believe this is the only way to see a real difference. 

Without ensuring disabled people are part of co-design and decision making, it will not be possible to achieve our vision - fairness for disabled people in sport and activity. 

We urge leaders and organisations to read the report and see what immediate changes they can make with a plan to achieve long-term goals.

The Sport England Uniting the Movement strategy was consulted on so widely - it isn’t just their strategy, it is a shared focus. 

It can’t be delivered without our expertise and support. As the leading voice for disabled people in sport and activity, our role involves supporting others to remove, reduce and tackle the inequalities that exist for disabled people. 

This isn’t just participating, its workforce, it’s marketing, it’s delivery, and performance pathways.

With almost 2,000 disabled and non-disabled adults aged 16+ taking part, the survey indicates that financial barriers are impacting disabled people’s activity levels. 

The demand is there, yet clearly confidence is low - at a time of financial difficulty. How can we expect disabled people to feel motivated to be active and spend their money on activity when they cannot be sure will be inclusive, or suitable to their needs?

Our latest findings revealed that disabled people are more likely to want to spend more on physical activity than non-disabled people, but almost a third of disabled people reported a fear that being more active will result in their benefits or financial assistance being removed (37 per cent).

Current economic and social challenges play a part. We need to address these wider systemic barriers to improve opportunity and experiences for disabled people. 

Activity Alliance and our partners can help organisations to improve and embed the necessary inclusive practices that will make a significant and positive difference.

Some of the most concerning insight is that disabled people's mental health and wellbeing is being disproportionately affected. 

Disabled people were nearly three times more likely than non-disabled people to feel lonely always or often (23 per cent vs 8per cent).

This is happening over an extended period of time, and despite positive efforts to tackle mental health issues, often through sport, and raise awareness as to its importance, disabled people have been left behind. 

We have actually seen an increase in loneliness for disabled people over the last four years, compared to decreasing levels of loneliness for non-disabled people.

Nearly two-thirds of disabled people who felt lonely agreed that being active could help them feel less lonely (65 per cent). 

Sport is clearly one of our most powerful tools to support a happier, healthier nation. Yet those in society who would benefit most have been excluded from efforts to tackle mental wellbeing, it simply cannot continue.

We are one of the most important organisations in sport, considering the situation we’re in and the way our society has been affected with regards to sport and physical activity access. 

Collectively, Activity Alliance, National Disability Sports Organisations, disability charities, Sport England and others began to have a real impact before the COVID-19 pandemic. We saw significant statistical changes in activity levels in a way that there hadn't been before.

These positive steps were more or less wiped out overnight by the pandemic. Now we face a rising cost-of-living and extra costs associated with being disabled. 

We know we can make a difference to people's behaviours, and we know it's more important than ever. But unless we step up and work together to change, address and evolve the way sport and physical activity is offered, sport is never going to get to where it needs to be.

We cannot do it on alone. Disabled people deserve urgency, commitment and investment in tackling barriers to sport and activity. 

We need to build on work like our Get Out Get Active (GOGA) programme which has brilliant example of ways that disabled and non-disabled people enjoy being active together.

We can change more people's lives for the better by increasing and improving opportunities for disabled people to be active. 

If we work together, in force, it means inclusion and accessibility will no longer be seen as optional.

The full report is available to view here.