NPHT is a runner up at the 2025 Disability Smart Awards NPHT is delighted to have attended last night’s Disability Smart Awards, as one of the finalists. The Business Disability Forum's awards, in association with the Department for Work and Pensions, celebrate organisations that are improving the life experiences of disabled employees and consumers, by removing barriers to inclusion. At the NPHT, we're proud to be working towards becoming 'Seamlessly Inclusive' by 2028, and were named as a finalist for the Disability Confident Award for small organisations, in recognition of our efforts to provide meaningful opportunities for young disabled people, as well as challenging negative stereotypes by sharing the incredible history of the Paralympics and its stories of human endeavour. CEO Vicky Hope-Walker says: We as a team are so proud to be runners up in this important National Award and will continue to strive for improvements, and share our learning across our local business sector and the national cultural sector. A big thank you to the Department of Work and Pensions who have supported our journey to become Disability Confident. In truth we are richer and wiser as an organisation for becoming a more inclusive organisation. Of course, none of our work would be possible without our funders and I thank Arts Council England, National Lottery Heritage Fund, Rothschild, Museums Association, Art Fund and Heart of Bucks, for being a key part of our journey. At the NPHT we believe that everyone should have access to the cultural sector, and the opportunity to engage with our Paralympic heritage. We work hard to provide opportunities for young disabled people, supporting four museum trainees, and working closely with partners such as Department of Work and Pensions, Talkback UK and MacIntyre to support work placements for young adults with disabilities. Through our project work, we have co-curated the Buckinghamshire Gallery in our Virtual Museum, with young pupils from SEND schools and local museums, introducing students to storytelling, interpreting, capturing images and curating. This year, we are co-curating the Hampshire Gallery in the same way. We are also committed to making our collections accessible. Last year we launched the Global Virtual Museum, making Paralympic heritage accessible from across the world. Much of the content in our Virtual Museum was developed through working with local disability groups to help curate and audio describe the galleries. In collaboration with Bucks Archives, the launch of the online Disability Sports Catalogue, making over 30,000 items in our collections digitally available and accessible for the first time. In February, we became the world's first Symbol-Friendly Museum, ensuring that Widgit resources are easy to access for those who may benefit from them. We’ve also worked closely with VICTA, to develop a tactile 3D blind football pitch for blind and partially sighted visitors to our Heritage Centre. We provide young people with the opportunity to engage with Paralympic heritage on their own terms, but in addition to that, we hope that our project work and outreach, empowers them to learn new skills, which are relevant to a career in the cultural sector. Of the Awards show last night, Vicky Hope-Walker said she left feeling inspired; 'What a brilliant event. It was so inspiring to see what large to micro companies are achieving. Thank you to the Business Disability Forum for organising, Freshfields for hosting and Ingenus for sponsoring our category'. Manage Cookie Preferences