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Call to make gyms more inclusive for disabled people

BBC Aisling McCooey holding two weights in the gym. She has blonde hair and a pink tshirt. She is smiling.BBC
Aisling McCooey has been weightlifting for almost a year

A woman with a learning disability wants gyms to be more inclusive for people like her so they can reach their full potential.

Aisling McCooey, 33, from Omagh in County Tyrone, has been weightlifting for almost a year but previous gym experiences had almost put her off.

"We didn't get what some of us wanted to achieve, which was basically a gym environment."

Aisling says she was given lighter weights and a lot of "chair exercises".

The charity Mencap, which supports people with learning disabilities, says it has been working hard to train gym staff on how better to support people who feel like they are "being treated differently".

'People with a learning disability want to be seen first for who they are'

Karen Gilgunn from Mencap. She has highlighted hair and a green jacket
Karen Gilgunn from Mencap says people with learning disabilities face barriers around inclusion

'Health inequalities'

Karen Gilgunn from Mencap says research suggests that "someone with a learning disability will die 10 years earlier due to health inequalities".

She says it is not that they are not aware of what they need to do but "it's the barriers they face around inclusion".

Mencap has trained more than 300 gym staff in Belfast in a learning disability awareness scheme because the charity has found that people don't always know how best to give support.

"People with a learning disability want to be seen first for who they are," says Karen.

"Not a misconception of what they can and cannot do."

'Overwhelming' world

Judith Divers smiling into the camera. She has glasses, a green top and black hair in a bob.
Judith Divers has found it difficult to access sport clubs for her eight-year-old son

Judith Divers says her eight-year-old son Ben "finds his world a bit overwhelming at times" and she has found it difficult to access sport for him outside of school.

"Places that can meet his needs, that are of good times.....and even have enough staff to get to know him."

Currently the only place she is able to take him for after school activities is Mencap.

Judith she would like him to have access to more facilities within the wider community that "he could mix with other people, either they have a disability or they don't".

She would like Ben to be able to participate in sport while "feeling really safe" but also "meeting his full potential as well".

'I want to be fitter and part of the community'

Ryan Proctor Productions Aisling lifting weights. She is in a gym in leggings and a t-shirt. She has one knee on the floor and the other bent with her foot on the ground. She holds a weight above her head in her right hand.Ryan Proctor Productions
Aisling is lifting heavier weights than ever

Aisling has now found a space that works for her at Delta gym in Omagh and she is enjoying the routine of going every morning.

"The coaches are brilliant," she says.

"They treat you like a person who can achieve what you want to achieve," she adds.

She says she is now lifting heavier weights than she ever did before.

"I want to be fitter, to be healthier and also to be a part of the community and show what we can do as well."