LTA and Special Olympics GB sign agreement to enhance opportunities for people with learning disabilities in tennis
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As National Inclusion Week continues, the LTA has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Special Olympics Great Britain (SOGB), the largest provider of year-round sports training and athletic competition in summer and winter sports for children and adults of all abilities with learning disabilities (LD), to enhance opportunities for people in LD tennis.
The agreement, which runs initially to the end of December 2026, will see the two organisations collaborate across the areas of venues, competitions and coaching. In particular, the agreement will look to boost the number of partnerships between SOGB clubs and tennis venues across the country, to give more opportunities across more counties and regions for those looking to try LD tennis. The agreement is the first signed between SOGB and a national governing body in Britain, as the organisation looks to build on the success of its recent Inclusion in Action strategy.
Through the LTA Open Court programme, the LTA has been working with venues across Britain, ranging from traditional tennis clubs to leisure centres, parks and other community venues, to boost tennis and padel participation among disabled communities. LTA support has meant that as of May this year, over 750 venues nationwide have established tennis sessions with adaptations for wheelchair, visually impaired and deaf players, as well as those with learning disabilities.
The agreement with the LTA is the first such agreement signed by SOGB, and will look to boost learning disability tennis participation.
As well as helping to develop opportunities for participation at a grassroots level, the LTA and SOGB will work together to develop a more accessible and inclusive pathway to enhance opportunities for people with learning disabilities to compete at events nationally and internationally, with a goal of increasing the number of players accessing LTA regional competitions by 10%.
By working together we can grow quality opportunities for people with an intellectual or learning disability to take part and thrive.
Britain’s LD tennis players have achieved major success on the global stage in 2025, beginning the year with titles at the Australian Open Intellectual Disability Championships, while Great Britain enjoyed its most successful ever Virtus World Championships in Kazakhstan in May, claiming ten medals in total: five gold, three silver, and two bronze.
Chris Smith, Head of Sport for Development at Special Olympics Great Britain said, “Partnering with an organisation such as the LTA is a hugely positive step forward for us an organisation. Tennis is one of our most popular sports, and by working together we can grow quality opportunities for people with an intellectual or learning disability to take part and thrive.
"This collaboration is a key part of our Inclusion in Action strategy, where our ambition is to increase participation levels and support more people with an intellectual and learning disability to be actively involved in sport on a regular basis. By working collaboratively, we can create more inclusive environments, remove barriers, and inspire lasting change across the sport of tennis.”
Matt Elkington, EDI Programme Manager for Disabled People at the LTA, said, “We are delighted to have signed this agreement with Special Olympics GB, as we look to expand opportunities for those with learning disabilities to get involved in tennis. We’ve already seen thousands getting involved through the LTA Open Court programme, and through this collaboration, we hope to see even more people from LD communities taking part locally, regionally, and nationally, as more LD-friendly venues and competitions develop.”
The partnership between the LTA and Special Olympics GB will seek to give more opportunities for players to represent their country, as Lily Mills and Adam Brownsword did when they won mixed doubles gold at the 2023 Special Olympics in Berlin (Image Credit: Ken Hanrahan-Smith)
Learning Disability tennis
Whether you want to play, volunteer or support, head to our LD tennis pages to see how you can get involved.
