Singapore Disability Sports Council
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Member Organisations & Associates
The Singapore Disability Sports Council (SDSC) provides elite and recreational sports programmes to persons of all disabilities through its member organisations. SDSC’s programmes benefit the vision impaired, the hearing impaired, the physically disabled, the intellectually disabled and people with cerebral palsy.
Association for Persons with Special Needs
The Association for Persons with Special Needs (APSN) is a voluntary welfare organisation catering the needs of children and adults with mild intellectual disability. It runs five schools and a training centre. As a founding member of SDSC, APSN recognises the importance of sports in their members’ growth and development. Their members have represented Singapore in a number of major overseas meets including the INAS-FID World Athletics Championships in Seville, Spain and the Special Olympics from its member organisations.
Asian Women’s Welfare Association – TM Integration Services
Therapy and Educational Assistance for Children in Mainstream Education (TEACH ME) is an integration programme offered by the Asian Women’s Welfare Association (AWWA). It caters to the educational, rehabilitative and social needs of children with physical disabilities in mainstream schools. AWWA TEACH ME joined the SDSC in 1998 to jump start sports and physical activities for its clients. Since 1998, it has organised several sports clinics with SDSC’s assistance, enabling their children to participate in PE classes in their respective mainstream schools.
Down Syndrome Association – Singapore
The Down Syndrome Association (DSA), Singapore, joined SSCD as the newest member organisation in 2000. Among DSA’s support groups is a newly set up DSA Youth Wing, which looks after the social and recreational activities for young people with Down syndrome (age 10 years and older). The Youth Wing’s Down Syndrome Sports Appreciation Programme includes recreational sports such as street soccer.
Handicaps Welfare Association
The Handicaps Welfare Association (HWA) has always been a strong advocate of sports. A founding member of the SDSC, HWA has been promoting sports and helping to nurture many outstanding sportsmen and sportswomen who have participated in local, regional and international sporting events. HWA’s sporting activities include swimming, athletics, archery, body-building, wheelchair tennis and wheelchair basketball.
Lawn Bowls Association for the Disabled (Singapore)
Formed in 2005, the Lawn Bowls Association is a disability-sports club catering to those who wish to take up lawn bowls. The formation of this club spells a good sign for the future of the local disabled scene. As the sports club function independently from the council, it gives them greater freedom on the management and promotion of their sport. Thus, they will not be limited by the stretched resources of SDSC.
Metta Welfare Association
Metta Welfare Association (Metta) was founded in 1992 by Venerable Shi Fa Zhao, Abbot of Golden Pagoda Buddhist Temple. He is also currently the President of the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple (Singapore). Metta is one of the keen supporters towards the promotion of sports for the disabled through its service centres. The Metta School has been participating in SDSC’s sports events and has emerged winners in several competitions such as the National Track & Field and Swimming Championships.
Movement for Intellectually Disabled of Singapore
Movement for the Intellectually Disabled of Singapore (MINDS) is one of the oldest and largest non-governmental organisations catering to the educational, vocational, social and welfare needs of the Intellectually Disabled in Singapore. One of the sports enthusiasts’ organisation, MINDS is actively involved in several sports and physical activities organised by SDSC. Their special schools have been participating regularly in the annual multi-sports event – the National Disability Games.
Muscular Dystrophy Association (Singapore)
The Muscular Dystrophy Association (Singapore), MDAS, is a self-help organisation formed in March 2000. It is committed to uplift the lives of people with Muscular Dystrophy. Since then the MDAS has strive to improve the lives of its members by joining sports and physical activities organised by SDSC as a form of rehabilitation. Today, MDAS has successfully assembled a group of sports enthusiasts that regularly play the game called Boccia.
Riding for the Disabled Association of Singapore
RDA Singapore was founded in 1982. Since then more than a thousand disabled children and adults have been given the opportunity to ride. RDA Singapore provides free, therapeutic horse riding lessons to children and adults with disabilities from all over Singapore. It aims to teach people with disabilities to ride to the best of their ability. They have been supporting SDSC in every sports event organised for the disabled community in Singapore.
Singapore Association for the Deaf
Since its formation in 1955, Singapore Association for the Deaf (SADeaf) has effectively transformed into an integrated services provider to the Deaf community in Singapore. Their services include the educational and industrial training support through its Singapore School for the Deaf (SSD) and the Vocational School for the Handicapped (VSH). The Deaf community is well-known for their gifted talent and special skills especially in sports. These characteristics instrumented the adventurous and ever-creative Sports & Recreation Committee of the Deaf (SRCDeaf) that was formed in 1974. Through this sports committee, we have seen several excellent sportsmen and sportswomen who had donned national colours to compete in international competitions.
Singapore Association of the Visually Handicapped
The Singapore Association of the Visually Handicapped (SAVH) aims to enhance the quality of life of our visually handicapped clients through specialised services that help them acquire new skills and gain self-reliance to cope with integration into mainstream society. It was founded in 1951 and since then, it has been providing various support and services to their clients relentlessly. Not just talented, but their skilful clients who joined SDSC’s Archery sport program are the boast of the organisation.
Singapore Leprosy Relief Association
The SILRA Home was built through public donations and officially opened on 4th September 1971 by the Late President of Singapore Dr. B. H. Sheares. The Home provides food, lodging, and recreation and healthcare services for ex-leprosy patients. It also teaches the patients some handicraft skills and rehabilitative work. The residents want to be treated as an equal as the normal person among the community. Thus, SDSC has successfully initiated a sport exchange program to the residents of SILRA Home. The residents seem to be falling in love with the game called Boccia.
Singapore Red Cross
Red Cross work in Singapore began in 30th September 1949 as part of the British Red Cross Society and the Singapore Red Cross (SRC) was incorporated by an Act of Parliament on 6th April 1973. The SRC is part of a world-wide, non-political, non-religious movement which based its work on the fundamental principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity and universality. An independent humanitarian organisation, it raises its own funds in serving humanity and furthering the work of the Red Cross locally and internationally.
Spastic Children’s Association of Singapore
The Spastic Children’s Association of Singapore (SCAS) was established in 1957 to provide special education, rehabilitation services, vocational training and gainful employment for children and adults with cerebral palsy in Singapore. Special education was introduced with the setting up of a school in 1966. In 1984, a workshop was added to provide sheltered employment for adults with cerebral palsy. The SCAS has involved in SDSC’s sports program in countless occasions and has always been the organisation to look out for during sports related events and activities.
The Society for the Physically Disabled
With the inception in 1964, The Society for the Physically Disabled (SPD) has grown from strength to strength in providing the integrated services for its disabled clients. SPD is committed to working in partnership with people with physical disabilities to develop their potential to the fullest so that they can be self-reliant and independent. As one of the pioneers in sports excellence and participation for the disabled, SPD has managed to leave behind the legacy in which the next generation of disabled athletes would emulate in the new frontier.
TOUCH Community Services
TOUCH Community Services is a not-for-profit charitable organisation officially registered in 1992 and has been a member of the National Council of Social Service since 1994. TOUCH is committed to the well-being of all people, reaching out to various levels of needs in the community. Its mission is to establish and provide for the needy and disadvantaged in our society an integrated network of community-based services that strengthens the family, believing that every individual is unique and capable of reaching his or her highest potential.