We recognise that children with disabilities often miss out on those valuable experiences that should be abundantly available to all children. Consequently, we have set up Accessible for All which provides regular events such as soft play, drama and dance, music workshops, exclusive use of skate parks, swimming and watersports, and our own award-winning FA-registered football group. The list is forever growing as we respond actively to the needs of the children we represent, so welcome to our world of possibilities.
We are all experiencing tough times at the moment and we wouldn’t want any of our families to opt out of any of our activities and events due to finance. If you do experience any difficulties, please contact Patsy@thedcf.org in the strictest confidence and we would be more than happy to help.

We have a very relaxed approach to all the sessions we run. Children can join in with the semi-structured formats or observe, play separately or stand on the side lines until they feel comfortable enough to join in, with no pressure.
We have a buddy system and are happy to arrange to meet families outside any of the venues, as we all know how daunting it can be entering a room full of unfamiliar faces.

Please note that booking onto activities and events is essential and parents/carers must accompany their children at all times. To find out about our activities parents/carers will need to email Rhian@thedcf.org who will send you our welcome pack and a short registration form. You will then be given access to our private Facebook pages and our regular emails which details our events diary and how to book.

We welcome all children up to the age of 16 who have SEN/disabilities and their siblings. We have a 2 hour slot on a caged outdoor artificial pitch and sessions are split into two smaller groups. As with all our activities, children can participate, observe, or stand on the sidelines until they feel comfortable enough to join in. We are set up to cater for wheelchair users with our large wheelchair footballs and will always do our very best to accommodate each child’s individual and behavioural needs.

We are a growing group of friendly families who will welcome you with open arms – an interest or ability in football is not a prerequisite as DCF FC is all about having fun.

For more details or to book please contact Alex@thedcf.org

This club is exclusively open to our PMLD (profound and multiple learning difficulty) wheelchair users. It is held at a local specialist school that has all the appropriate changing facilities and is fully accessible. The club runs from 12:30 – 16:00 on alternate Saturdays and parents /carers can have lunch together and share advice and support. The children and young people enjoy wealth of activities from wheelchair dancing to yoga (with everything in between) and all activities are carefully planned to meet the needs of every young person that attends. We are eternally grateful to parent and Trustee Avril Jackson, parent Paula Street and amazing volunteer Emily Collins (daughter of our Trustee Amy) who run this new club. A special thank you to our ambassador Abbie Graham who runs our registration and switch adapted toy library.

Quote from parent Charlotte Reid
“We really do look forward to this group, Olly just can’t cope with much at the moment and our world has got very small, so this is just amazing. We’re making lots of happy memories x”.

For more details, dates and booking please contact Paula: paulachuchill@hotmail.com

LoCoMotion is a movement, music and sensory session for all children and young people including those using a wheelchair. These sessions are designed with children in mind who require a more sedentary, calm and sensory experience, whether your child is wheelchair dependent or simply prefers a relaxed and serene atmosphere. This session is designed for you.

The sessions involve group and individual activities that engage the young person’s senses using a range of props and equipment, supported by a structured format of themed musical sections. Your child will be encouraged to develop skills in coordination, relaxation, body awareness, and fine and gross motor skill movement.  The session is very intimate, and numbers will always be kept low.

Along with the physical benefits to your child, this session is an opportunity to create a mindful state, and parent-child bonding.  During LoCoMotion, your child will remain in their wheelchair.

A new Accessible for All offering…our very own Cinema at The Treehouse (our children’s shop in Boscombe)

Thanks to Ian Morrish from Together for Cinema, Luke Crutcher from Living Home Tech and their partners we have a state of the art cinema.
This now means that our families can come into the shop when it is not open for retail and have a proper cinema experience. Many familes cannot enjoy this experience that we may take for granted and have never been to the cinema due to their child’s physical or sensory needs.

Not only that we can offer bespoke parties for children, offer it to our multi-cultural story time attendees, use it for educational workshops and so much more.

We have partnered up with The Absolute Music Trust to provide fun music sessions at a professional recording studio. There is opportunity to use drums, bass and electric guitars, keyboards, mikes, plus the help of Jamie and Mark who are experienced sound engineers.
The sessions last for 2 hours. Depending on the needs of your child, parents/carers have a choice as to which of the two sessions on offer is the best fit. Children of all ages and abilities are welcome, and from our experience children with profound disabilities can particularly benefit from these sessions.

‘We enjoyed the absolute music session so much, great that it was so tailored to our children’s specific needs. It has been the highlight of our half term. Thank you’.

Currently these sessions are being held during school holidays, but we are hoping to expand availability.

We run very relaxed craft seasons where children of all abilities and their siblings are encouraged to explore their creativity.

We provide a wide range of materials, and have run activities such as Easter bonnet making, Christmas cards and foot painting. These are quiet and only semi structured sessions and a lovely opportunity for children and parents to form new friendships.

Wetwheels provides the opportunity for all disabled people, including those with profound and complex disabilities, to access the sea in a safe, stimulating and rewarding way on board a specially-built, fully-accessible powerboat.

The Wetwheels concept was developed and pioneered by disabled adventurer, Geoff Holt MBE DL, and is proven to be highly successful.
We are delighted that over 200 people have been able to get out on the water for these totally inclusive sessions.
By offering the opportunity to experience the sea – not just as passengers, but as active participants – we build confidence and improve physical and mental wellbeing.

“There is something very special about being on the water. For someone with a disability, being at sea offers unparalleled freedoms. Your mind and imagination fill with things that once didn’t seem possible.”

We are delighted to work as Project partners with the amazing Treehouse Theatre. As partners we benefit not only from exclusive performances but our children can access their inclusive drama workshops. We love working with The Treehouse as they offer fully relaxed performances, with embedded sign language throughout and encourage audience participation within all their shows.

Many of our families recently attended The Elves and the Shoemaker and all were delighted at how their children were included.

Relaxed performances with embedded sign language. These shows are full of laugher and a mix of magic, clowning and story telling for the whole family. At the end everyone can try out their circus skills too.

Getting together as a group is just so much fun so we regularly host picnics in local parks ( in the warmer months) have Christmas, Easter and Halloween parties with entertainment, get together to play with trains with Trainmaster or make wonderful creations out of clay with Creative Clay.