Mayo footballer Padraig O'Hora pictured at the launch of SuperValu’s #CommunityIncludesEveryone campaign in Croke Park.
By John Harrington
Despite successive defeats to Kerry in the Allianz Football League Final and Galway in the Connacht SFC semi-final, Mayo defender Padraig O’Hora finds perspective easy to come by.
That’s thanks to his work with Western Care Association as a Social Care Assistant and Mayo Mental Health Association as a Community Liaison Officer.
At the launch of SuperValu’s #CommunityIncludesEveryone campaign, O’Hora spoke passionately about his work in the neurodivergent community, how it keeps him grounded, and his hope that GAA clubs become more inclusive for all.
"It's changed my mindset quite a lot,” said O’Hora. “I work alongside the autistic community, or the neurodivergent community quite a lot, both in my professional work and in my community work.
“That's a huge part of my life and what Supervalu are trying to do in relation to diversity and inclusion in the GAA is extremely important to me.
"It's something I was trying to latch onto, even before [this]. So, it's great to come together with SuperValu who have that same drive and motivation, so hopefully we can improve the inclusivity through the GAA clubs in Ireland. I work in the mental health area too, and I suppose it does bring some form of perspective to life in general.
"If you have a setback in football or an injury, it isn't the end of the world. I see people who have to struggle day-to-day, and who have to fight. They're very inspiring and I think it does influence my attitude towards football."
The GAA’s stated aim as a sporting organisation is to offer an inclusive, diverse, and welcoming environment for everyone and follows through on this mission in a variety of ways.
Smiles on faces are a regular sight at Blessington All-Stars training sessions.
O’Hora believes it’s up to each and every club to seriously think about how they can make themselves more accessible for all and to seek guidance from those who can help them in this endeavour.
"There's scope within the GAA with regards to clubs being more accessible,” he says. “And I think it starts with a good conversation, and I don't think you can provide something for somebody without understanding the person fully.
"What's important is to sit down and discuss with people within our community about what variables we need to adapt for them. What helps you and allows you to function comfortably within a setting. Sometimes it's really small barriers, especially for the autistic community. It might very well be a whistle that goes off at training.
"A parent might say, 'My son or daughter can't deal with whistles, or that kind of noise.' And for that reason, they never risking bringing them to training. And that might not be communicated, so maybe we can make a change there. That's just a simple idea but in general, we can take a look at people and ask what we can do to make things easier for them.
"The world doesn't fit everybody and we should be obliged to try and at least do our best to make things a little more accessible for the neurodivergent community. That's my passion, and Supervalu's passion with this campaign."
A central plank of the GAA’s commitment to inclusion and diversity is the GAA for All family of initiatives that includes Wheelchair Hurling and Camogie, Football for all, Fun and Run, ‘All Star’ Inclusive clubs, Cúl 4 All/Cúl Eile Camps and intercultural activities.
In particular there has been a big uptake of clubs organising ‘All Star’ training sessions for children with additional needs.
Coaches and children who took part in Crossmaglen Rangers' first GAA For All training session.
Some say it would be better to go even further and incorporate all children in the same training session, but O’Hora doesn’t think a one size fits all approach is always the best one.
"I don't think there's a straight answer,” he says. “Everybody wants a black and white answer and I don't think it's there. You have to take the person into consideration, and people are different. What works for one might not work for the other.
"I do think the 'GAA For All' idea is a really good approach, and the stuff that SuperValu is doing. I think inclusion days are a good step. You will have critics who say that's not fully inclusive, but it's a step forward, and step towards knowing, understanding and learning a bit more. So, I think it's a great step forward.
"I suppose it's the difference between integration and inclusion. Integration would be providing a service or a day for just the people with additional needs. Inclusion is taking that to the next step and including those people into the services that are already available.
It's a step in the right direction and that's all we can do, to try and improve. Some kids might be able to stay in that set-up, maybe some kids want to get engaged in what you might call mainstream things.
"But if we all try to go the right way, we'll get somewhere. I don't think there's a black and white answer to that."
