An Alvechurch gymnastics coach who has blazed a trail for inclusivity in the sport has been nominated for a national award. 

Kirsty Garratt, 43, is head coach of Wythall Gymnastics Club and has been shortlisted in the Inclusion Impact category at the British Gymnastics Awards.  

The former NHS physio set up the club with mum Sue Hemus in 2001, with the aim of opening up the sport for everyone regardless of their learning or physical disability, and has steadily expanded from just one class a week to a seven-days-a-week operation in their own facilities. 

Garratt has spearheaded efforts to provide classes for those with different needs, including children with autism, down syndrome, ADHD and a wide range of other disabilities – and couldn’t believe her tireless work had been recognised after over 20 years. 

“I got so emotional because I have never been recognised in that way at all,” said Garratt. “I was so shocked when I got the email that I asked if it was a wind up.  

“It was really warming to think that people see what I have created with my team of coaches, and everyone else who helps at the club, that we are trying to provide a service to all abilities.  

“That was always my dream, to have my own gym club so I could provide a service to everybody who wanted to learn gymnastics, no matter whether you were a top gymnast or whether you were just doing it for fun. 

“I originally came from an artistic gymnastics background, where you are really only in the club if you were an artistic gymnast, when I became a coach I wanted more than that.  

“I didn’t want to just support the kids that make that elite pathway. I am so passionate about gymnastics, so we want to support every level of gymnastics.” 

Garratt previously worked as a physio technician in the NHS, working with children with physical and learning disabilities and it is this experience that has fuelled her focus on inclusivity. 

The club now has over 40 gymnasts with multiple disabilities, with a wide-range of classes on offer to adapt to whatever requirements are necessary. 

“I left the NHS in 2013 and became a full-time gymnastics teacher. because I was working a 70-hour week trying to build the club up as well as trying to work a job,” she added. 

“Because of my background, I have always been a massive fan of inclusion. We try and accommodate all types of gymnastics in our club. 

“We have recreational classes, for those who come just to enjoy the sport at whatever level. We have advanced rec for children that tend to enter beginner competitions and we have a development squad. 

“I have just designed my own show that can showcase gymnastics in its ways and abilities with no pressure. It is an inclusive show where it is all about the fun. 

“I want to provide a service to gymnastics where it is not all about sitting in front of a judge and having that pressure put on you where you have got to do your best.” 

The British Gymnastics Awards are community led and about championing those who make the sport an uplifting experience for all, with more nominations than ever before coming in this year.

It is the creativity, dedication and passion from people in the sport that make gymnastics an accessible, inclusive and enjoyable sport for all.

The nominations have been judged by panels made up of British Gymnastics committee members and external panellists from across UK Sport, Gymnova, Milano, Gymaid, Youth Sport Trust, Sport England, Women in Sport, The Include Summit, Sport and Recreation Alliance, The Sport for Development Coalition and GB gymnasts.

As Wythall Gymnastics Club go from strength to strength, Garratt admits she will likely have to look again for a new venue that can accommodate even more gymnasts of all abilities. 

“We manage what we have got, in the best facility we have available to us,” said Garratt. 

“We have kind of outgrown our building at the moment and we are desperately trying to move again. We struggle with access to the building we are in; at the moment we can’t accommodate wheelchair users.  

“I know, because of my physio background, where I would want to offer sessions to wheelchair users, but we can’t do that at the moment.” 

The British Gymnastics Awards celebrate those at the heart of gymnastics who create an uplifting experience for all. British Gymnastics has launched a new vision for a new era of gymnastics, learn more about Leap Without Limits here - https://www.british-gymnastics.org/vision