Credit: Anthony Hayton Photography

About GBWR

Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby (GBWR) is the national governing body for the game of wheelchair rugby in England, Scotland, and Wales, is a registered charity and company limited by guarantee, and is a full member of World Wheelchair Rugby (WWR) and of the British Paralympic Association (BPA). GBWR also operates a subsidiary, GBWR Trading Limited, which manages GBWR’s commercial opportunities and sponsorship.

Wheelchair rugby is a London 2012 Paralympic Games legacy success story and GBWR has grown the sport from a domestic league with a single division comprised of seven teams, to one which now has three leagues providing competition opportunities for 20 teams. The domestic league is internationally recognised for its high level of competition, where it regularly sees international players from Europe joining domestic teams and strengthening the level of competition.

The GB national team are the current Paralympic champions, having taken the gold medal at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games – the first medal of any colour for a European nation. The team are also the current European champion and have secured gold a record total of seven times since 1995. The team are currently ranked third in the world.

GBWR offers the sport for young people and our junior programme provides an opportunity for those aged 8 to 17 years to experience wheelchair rugby in a junior-only environment which currently has over 90 youngsters playing the game regularly.

In recent years GBWR developed a new discipline of the game aimed at attracting those with greater functionality than the Paralympic discipline permits. Wheelchair rugby fives allows us to reach more people with wheelchair rugby. Although in its infancy, the discipline has proved popular with new teams developing across the country, and more recently has seen international growth through WWR.

In addition, GBWR has in the past delivered programmes in military rehabilitation centres, in conjunction with the charity Help for Heroes. Testament to this work is the military-based team which has evolved from these programmes. GBWR also provides the coaching and support for the Invictus wheelchair rugby team, where Great Britain took the gold medal in 2015.

GBWR activities are funded through a mix of government, National Lottery, commercial and philanthropic funding. UK Sport has recognised the achievement of the GB national team, with GBWR being in receipt of the maximum level of Aspiration Award funding, £500k, ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games and £2.6M for the Paris 2024 cycle.  The Paris award was uplifted by a further £300k to support GBWR’s pathway development. Sport England has also recognised the success of GBWR, with a four-year award totalling £1.4M to support grassroots delivery.

In 2022, GBWR launched a new brand, with a new-look logo and strategy towards the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.

GB Wheelchair Rugby launch new identity

Moving Forward Together: our mission, vision and strategy

Philosophy

Everybody has a true force within them. Wheelchair rugby exists to help people find it, explore it, and show it.

Mission

To lead, promote, and grow vibrant and inclusive wheelchair rugby communities, and continually achieve success on the global stage.

Vision

To be a world-class sporting organisation that sets the standard in participation, elite performance, and promotion in disability sport.

Values

Everyone involved with GBWR is expected to follow the core values of our sport:

Enjoyment: We want everyone who includes wheelchair rugby in their lives, whether as a player, a member of staff, an official or a volunteer, to love everything about the sport: the excitement, its contact and the feeling of belonging to a community.

Excellence: Everyone involved will strive to be the best at everything they do.

Trust: The wheelchair rugby family believes in honesty, integrity and fair play.

Respect: People involved with the game and all who come into contact with the sport have respect for one another.

Inclusiveness: Wheelchair rugby is open to anyone who shares our values of the sport. People will help each other to reach their goals: treating them fairly and equally.

Teamwork: All those in wheelchair rugby are part of a team and part of the wheelchair rugby family.

Our values are reflected in our codes of conduct – standards of behaviour all involved with the sport in Great Britain are expected to display: board members, employees, members and volunteers. We will only work with partners who respect our values and demonstrate a commitment to them.