The Inclusive Fitness Initiative (IFI) is investigating the potential delivery of the scheme in Europe, following its success in the UK over the past five years.

In the short-term, the intention is to secure funding to deliver research into: the delivery of inclusive fitness programmes in identified EU member states; the make-up of the European fitness industry; what legislation supports the inclusion of disabled people; and to what extent a scheme like the IFI will be successful abroad.

MLS – the project management agents for the scheme – and EFDS Operating Company are leading the expansion plans. With an estimated 10 per cent of Europeans being disabled – and early anecdotal evidence suggesting there is not enough access to inclusive fitness provision in EU countries – the IFI says it is important to investigate how it may be able to expand the scheme into Europe, and possibly across the world.

IFI national director Sue Catton says: “The success of the IFI to date provides a launch pad for developments on an international stage. With the European Year of Equal Opportunities firmly on the horizon in 2007, we need to consider how disabled people throughout Europe can gain equitable access to physical activity and the subsequent benefits that brings – now evident in the UK.”

Further afield, the IFI has recently met with Mike Gourley, senior adviser for disability at Sport and Recreation New Zealand, who visited the UK to identify projects that may work in New Zealand.

The IFI has also reported that, with the current development of the IFI Mark – an accreditation scheme delivered on a fee-paying basis in the UK – the scheme has moved from being a grant-funded project to one that is now self-sustainable and industry-driven.