Hosts of Learning Disability Super League Festival

This weekend saw Warrington Wolves host a special rugby league festival for people with learning disabilities. The event was part of the groundbreaking sports inclusion programme, the Community Integrated Care Learning Disability Super League. 

Super League and the Rugby Football League (RFL) have partnered with the national social care charity, Community Integrated Care, to create a ground-breaking adapted form of rugby league for people with learning disabilities and autism. Backed by 12 major rugby league clubs and integrated into the Super League calendar, this is the first ever example of a professional sports league sharing its brand with a learning disability sports programme.

The festival took place at Victoria Park, Warrington, on Saturday (22^nd June) and was hosted by the Warrington Wolves Foundation, the charitable arm of Warrington Wolves Rugby League Club. The Wolves Learning Disability team were one of 11 teams that took part in the event, across 8 other clubs; Castleford Tigers, Hull KR, Leeds Rhinos, St Helens, Wakefield Trinity, Widnes Vikings and Wigan Warriors.

The festival is the first event since the historic launch took place at Dacia’s Magic Weekend last month, with over 160 people learning disabilities having the opportunity to play in front of tens of thousands of people at the famous home of Liverpool F.C.

Mark Adams, CEO of Community Integrated Care, says, “Once again the Community Integrated Care Learning Disability Super League has provided an unforgettable weekend for over 100 people with learning disabilities, promoting inclusion in sports and developing invaluable life skills for the participants. The growth in this initiative so far has been incredible – I’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone in the rugby league family for their support of the programme, it really has been overwhelming.”

Sarah Pickford, Sustainable Clubs and Foundations Manager at the RFL, says, “The Community Integrated Care Learning Disability Super League is one of the fastest growing areas of the game, and it has engaged a wide range of people from many different clubs across the country. We’re absolutely delighted at its progress, and we have a real opportunity here to build upon its growth to the Rugby League World Cup 2021.”