Deer Park Archers welcomes all archers, and would-be archers, with any kind of impairment – whether it be physical, sensorial or neurological.
During 2021 we have continued to improve the accessibility of our facilities particularly wrt the car park, social terracing and field course areas.
However, anyone interested in membership should following this link Membership & Fees to determine the latest status. Also to the following link to Beginners Courses.
What’s in it for You?
If you are someone thinking of ‘having a go’ at archery, you are likely to have some questions like – Where do I start? With my disability is it safe to do so? What are the facilities? What is the access like? etc
Whatever your query, we will do our best to help you find an answer. Archery has always been in the forefront of integration for disabled participants. We share the same shooting line, tolerate the same weather and compete for the same trophies – and frequently win them!! We have a Paralympics squad to be proud of and to aspire to. The club structure of Archery GB ensures that there will be a level of activity to suit your needs and provide you with enjoyable recreation or challenging competition.
Deer Park Archers Commitment to Equality
Deer Park Archers recognises the value of sport and the important role it plays in enhancing the quality of life. Our vision is to “make Deer Park Archers a physically active and successful sporting club” and we are committed to ensuring that opportunities are accessible to all those who wish to start, stay and succeed in our sport. We firmly believe that everyone should have the opportunity to participate in sport and physical activity regardless of their age, gender, disability, race, ethnic origin, nationality, colour, parental or marital status, religious belief, class or social background, sexual preference or political belief. We are committed to working in partnership to ensure that there is equal access and choice for everyone wishing to be involved in sport and physical activity, whether as a participant or as a volunteer.
New friends and great fun! 
Impressive shooting at club
Have-a-goes & Beginners Courses
If you have a disability and are thinking about trying archery, please feel free to contact us. We can discuss your requirements and see if we can help. We may suggest a short have-a-go session to better understand the best way forward or we may suggest a 6 week beginners course, once you and ourselves (it is a partnership) are confident that we can provide you with the right support to make the experience a good one.
You will need to be aware that if we have the skills to support you, then you will be most welcome. However if we do not have sufficient spare coaching capacity at that time, then we may ask you to be patient until we can provide the necessary support to support you achieving your full potential.
What steps have we taken to make our activities more inclusive?
- All of our indoor and outdoor venues are wheelchair accessible and have accessible toilets.
- We hold one of the biggest annual indoor inclusion competition attended by archers with a range of different needs from all over the country thanks to the kind sponsorship of the Worshipful Company Of Fletchers.
- Created more categories for Inclusion Archers at our own events.
- Put on regular inclusion sessions both indoors and outdoors.
- Supported our coaches in gaining experience of how to support archers with additional needs.
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Course picture of participants on day 2 of their 4 day programme. 
Martin learning to shoot blindfolded during last round of Coaching Courses.
Deer Park Archers Disability Advisor Role Description
We already do a lot but we need to do even more and we need to develop our skills and resources to be more effective.
We do not claim to be experts or have all the answers but we are fortunate to have qualified coaches who all have had some training to make them more effective when working with those with disabilities.
Many have had training to work more effectively with those with Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD), others visually impaired archers. We are also gaining experience by working with Gloucestershire’s Active Inclusion Team on their Playground to Podium events for Children with learning difficulties and disabilities which has been hailed a national success. As a club we are fortunate to have several coaches that have or who are, currently working full time with a range of disabilities at day care centres.
We have been fortunate to work with a number of organisations that provide support for a wide range of disabilities and age groups, some have been single have-a-go sessions but many have been 4, 6 or 8 week programmes and these include running a 10 week programme for 24 adults from Day Care & Drop-in Centres for individuals with a range of disabilities at Cheltenham Recreation Centre with the support of Active Gloucestershire.
Many of the standard after-school clubs and beginners courses have a number of participants with a range of impairments, restrictions and limitations.
We have also invested in a range of archery equipment to help support some of those with physical impairments, if we do not have the solution we do have the contacts to help us to find a solution.
