On Tuesday 15th July, the National Paralympic Heritage Trust celebrated 10 years of protecting, celebrating and sharing Paralympic History. We were joined by guest speaker and Paralympian John Harris and many of our partners, colleagues and supporters, to look back at some stand out moments from the journey so far.

Visitors explored the three new galleries within the Global Virtual Museum whilst others exercised their descriptive techniques as part of our sensory co-creation taster session. Keen competitors embraced their sporting spirit with a boccia match and attendees cast their vote for the item they most wanted to see as part of the National Paralympic Heritage Centre displays (watch the video to find out the results).

Our four museum trainees put their passions into practice with Adam on hand with Widgit resources to help visitors navigate their way around the space. Simon manned the collections display, sharing some of our rarer items whilst explaining their historical significance. Ben showcased some of our digital work, showing visitors the 3D scanning software which allows us to make our physical collections more accessible online. And Thomas used his inquisitive gifts to interview visitors about their favourite moments with NPHT over the years.

And what a ten years it's been! Since 2015, the National Paralympic Heritage Trust has:

• Supported 30 work placements and 4 paid part-time traineeships for local disabled people.
• Welcomed over 1 million visitors from across the UK and internationally
• Preserved 2,000 newly donated Paralympic artefacts and made 20,000 historical records accessible online (in partnership with Buckinghamshire Archives).
• Hosted 44 'Meet the Paralympian' events offering schools and adults the chance to engage both with Paralympic Heritage and disability sport personalities.
• Recorded 60+ oral histories from Paralympic athletes and pioneers.
• Curated 7 regional exhibitions and 6 virtual tours, an interactive Digital Explorations Museum and 7 unique online virtual galleries as part of the NPHT’s Global Virtual Museum.
• And we became the world’s first ‘symbol-friendly museum’ in Feb 2025, in partnership with Widgit.

A stand out moment for many was hearing from five-time Paralympian, John Harris who in 1984 read the athlete's oath at Stoke Mandeville. In an intimate moment as part of an exclusive event for our partner SEND schools, John shared some powerful words of affirmation:

'A lot of people think that when you have a disability, that that's the end of the world. But for me, I have to be honest, I would never change what's happened to me... I'm 80 this year, and I've had an absolutely fantastic life... I would like to say one thing, don't ever ever, let anyone say to you, you can't do it, because you can'.

The whole NPHT team wishes to express a deep gratitude to all of those who have been a part of the journey so far. Without the contributions of Paralympians, partners, volunteers, visitors, funders, supporters and friends, we would have far less to celebrate. Thank you.

After a fitting event, we now look forward to the exciting things to come in the decade ahead!