Rotherham United are proud to be dedicating Saturday's South Yorkshire derby against Sheffield Wednesday to raising the profile of Level Playing Field’s Unite for Access campaign – an initiative centred around making professional sport accessible for all.
The Millers will be partaking in a number of activities to show their support on matchday which include the players visibly offering their backing by wearing t-shirts adorned by the Level Playing Field branding during the warm-ups.
Also invited along as a show of our thanks for all the work that she does within our community with people with learning disabilities is one of our Community Champions Kay Ellis, whose efforts year-round will be celebrated on Saturday.
A plaque dedicated to the memory of Disabled Supporters’ Association champion and lifelong Miller Ken Tupling will also be unveiled in the Disabled Supporters’ Room pre-match this weekend.
The headline activity in the build-up to the fixture was the hosting of a Disabled Supporters’ Open Day at AESSEAL New York Stadium – which was held in partnership with our Disabled Supporters’ Assocation.
With the help of our Community Trust, the club opened the doors of the first team stadium for supporters to come down and enjoy a day in our company, which included a coffee morning to kick things off before we invited the guests to get involved in a series of activities that were provided on-site and included archery and mini golf to name just two.
Around 100 people attended the event and were made up of the various service providers that the club has close connections with in Rotherham and beyond and fans keen to see what the club has to offer its disabled supporters.
Those same individuals were then given a full guided tour of the stadium and the facilities that it boasts which include a Disabled Supporters’ Room where people can enjoy a cup of coffee on a matchday and our Accessible Changing Facility which was provided and constructed by Changing Places, before seeing all the behind-the-scenes areas such as the first team dressing rooms and Les Payne Press Room.
Beyond that, provision had been made for attendees to have a go at Power Chair Football on the AESSEAL New York Stadium concourses, ahead of the eagerly-anticipated launch of the Community Trust’s new Power Chair Football team.
Speaking following a fantastic event and in anticipation of the club shining further light on the work it does to create an accessible and inclusive environment, Head of Community Jamie Noble said:
“Our ambitions to constantly evolve and remain at the forefront of the industry when it comes to accessibility remain as strong as they ever have and it was brilliant to be able to showcase the facilities that we offer here at AESSEAL New York Stadium already.
“The Level Playing Field fixture – particularly in a sold-out South Yorkshire derby like the game we are hosting – is a fantastic opportunity to let the people of Rotherham and beyond know what we have to offer here and will hopefully encourage a few more people to come and take advantage of our facilities."