WheelPower

What WheelPower does

WheelPower is a UK-registered charity (charity number 265498, England and Wales) operating continuously in charitable form since 1972, with roots in the 1948 Stoke Mandeville Games — the event widely credited as the origin of the Paralympic Movement. The charity is headquartered at Stoke Mandeville Stadium in Aylesbury, England, and its stated mission is to assist disabled people in participating in wheelchair sport. WheelPower's program portfolio spans more than 30 wheelchair sports, and the organization is led by CEO Martin McElhatton OBE.

The charity's operational model combines direct participant services with awareness-building and fundraising activity. Programs are delivered from the Stoke Mandeville Stadium site, which functions as both an operational base and a national venue for wheelchair sport events. WheelPower engages participants, families, rehabilitation and healthcare referral networks, and corporate partners to grow participation in wheelchair sport across the UK. The charity supports a small in-house team of 1–10 employees and works alongside named institutional and corporate supporters including Sport England, the National Lottery, Stewarts, More Leisure, Serco, Movement Activity Sport, Clyde Co, Active Care Group, Buckinghamshire Freemasons, and Mobility in Motion.

WheelPower's revenue model is a diversified charitable mix: individual donations, a lottery with a stated £25,000 top prize, community fundraising events, gifts in wills, and corporate partnerships. The National Lottery and Sport England function as anchor institutional funders, while the broader corporate sponsor base provides sector-diversified support across legal, leisure, rehabilitation, and mobility services. The organization is positioned as a heritage charity whose competitive position is rooted in its Paralympic origin story and exclusive occupation of Stoke Mandeville Stadium rather than in commercial technology or scalable product distribution.

Name

WheelPower

Legal name

The British Wheelchair Sports Foundation Limited

Website

https://wheelpower.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1948

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

WheelPower is a UK-registered charity, operating since 1972 and rooted in the 1948 Stoke Mandeville Games, that helps disabled people participate in more than 30 wheelchair sports from its national base at Stoke Mandeville Stadium.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Disability Sport and Adaptive Physical Activity Services

NAICS

Other Similar Organizations (except Business, Professional, Labor, and Political Organizations) (813990)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Disability & Adaptive Sports Organizations (Paralympic, Special Olympics) (MPAKACAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Adaptive & Para-Sport Event Organizers (MPAKADAM), Functional Fitness & Mobility Training (HSADAAAD)

Keywords

• Wheelchair sports
• Disability sport charity
• Adaptive physical activity
• Rehabilitation through sport
• Paralympic sport programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Stoke Mandeville

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: WheelPower operates as a charity relying on donations from individuals and organizations. They run regular donation campaigns and accept one-time and recurring gifts.
2. WheelPower Lottery: Weekly lottery program where participants can win up to £25,000 while supporting the charity's work.
3. Fundraising Events: Organizes events including Great South Run, Great North Run, Skydive, Tour de Vale, and Superhero Tri where participants raise money.
4. Corporate Partnerships: Receives support from corporate partners including Movement Activity Sport, Stewarts, More Leisure, Serco, and Sport England.
5. Gifts in Wills: Legacy giving program where supporters can leave gifts in their wills to support the charity's ongoing work.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

WheelPower (The British Wheelchair Sports Foundation Limited) is a UK national charity based at Stoke Mandeville Stadium that helps physically disabled people participate in wheelchair sports and physical activity. It organizes competitive and introductory sports events (Inter Spinal Unit Games, National Junior Games), delivers online and in-person exercise classes, connects individuals to over 30 wheelchair sports through a national club and spinal-injury-unit network, and funds its work through donations, a weekly lottery, fundraising events, and gifts in wills.

Product overview

WheelPower is a UK-based national charity for wheelchair sport, operating from Stoke Mandeville Stadium as the national organization providing opportunities for physically disabled people to participate in sport and physical activity. The organization offers a portfolio of services including sports events (Inter Spinal Unit Games, National Junior Games, Sports Festivals), online exercise classes (Box-Fit, Tai Chi, general exercise via Zoom), an Exercise at Home program with videos and resistance bands, a comprehensive wheelchair sports directory covering over 30 sports, getting started resources for new participants, a weekly lottery, fundraising events (running challenges, skydives, triathlons), volunteer opportunities, and a speaker bureau. The charity facilitates participation across sports including archery, athletics, boccia, cycling, hand cycling, swimming, wheelchair basketball, and wheelchair tennis, serving as the central hub connecting disabled individuals with sports opportunities and providing support infrastructure for the wheelchair sport ecosystem.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• WheelPower Lottery: Weekly lottery to support WheelPower's charitable activities

Products and services

• Sports Events WheelPower organizes and hosts competitive and introductory sports events including the Inter Spinal Unit Games, National Junior Games, Learn to Play Padel sessions, and the Middlesex Sports Festival, providing opportunities for disabled people across multiple wheelchair sports.
• Online Exercise Classes Virtual fitness classes including Adaptive Box-Fit with Luiz, Exercise Classes with Ella, and Tai Chi sessions delivered via Zoom, enabling disabled people to stay active from home.
• Exercise at Home Program A home-based fitness package providing online classes, exercise videos, and resistance bands for disabled individuals to maintain fitness independently.
• Wheelchair Sports Directory A comprehensive guide covering over 30 wheelchair-accessible sports including Archery, Athletics, Boccia, Cycling, Hand Cycling, Swimming, Wheelchair Basketball, and Wheelchair Tennis, with information on how to get started and find local clubs.
• Getting Started Resources Guidance materials covering health and fitness after spinal cord injury, physical activity advisors, sports wheelchair selection, maintenance tips, and equipment funding assistance for newly paralysed individuals.
• WheelPower Lottery A weekly charity lottery with a top prize of £25,000, allowing supporters to win while contributing to wheelchair sport programs.
• Fundraising Events Challenge events including the Great South Run, Great North Run, Skydive, Tour de Vale, and Superhero Tri powered by MARVEL, enabling supporters to raise money for the charity through athletic participation.
• Donation Programs Regular monthly giving options (£5, £10, £15 per month) and one-off donations at £7, £12, or £20 levels, each tied to specific outcomes such as providing advice to recently paralysed persons or sports access for disabled children.
• Volunteering Program Structured opportunities for individuals to volunteer at WheelPower events, local sports clubs, or in the WheelPower office, supporting skill development and event delivery.
• Speaker Bureau A booking service allowing corporate, school, and community event organizers to engage WheelPower representatives to speak about wheelchair sport and the Paralympic movement.

Quantifiable outcome

• 70+ years of service providing wheelchair sport opportunities
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Movement Activity SportcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMovement Activity Sport partnership supporting WheelPower's mission to provide wheelchair sport opportunities.
• StewartscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStewarts law firm partnership supporting WheelPower. Stewarts specializes in personal injury cases including spinal injury.
• More LeisurecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMore Leisure Community Leisure operates Stoke Mandeville Stadium and partners with WheelPower.
• SercocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSerco provides leisure services and partners with WheelPower for disability sport delivery.
• Clyde CocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClyde Co insurance and risk management firm partnership supporting WheelPower's activities.
• Active Care GroupminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerActive Care Group developing new private specialist rehabilitation hospital at Stoke Mandeville.
• Mobility in MotionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership to champion inclusive mobility and expand awareness of vehicle adaptations and disability sport.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• LimbPower: UK charity supporting amputees and people with limb impairments through sport and physical activity. Directly comparable as a niche disability sport charity delivering events, clubs, and rehabilitation-through-sport programming similar to WheelPower.
• Activity Alliance: UK disability sport and physical activity umbrella organisation (formerly English Federation of Disability Sport). Comparable as a national body promoting inclusive sport for disabled people, working with NGBs and delivering programmes analogous to WheelPower's mission.
• British Wheelchair Basketball: National governing body for wheelchair basketball in the UK. Directly comparable as a UK-based wheelchair sport organisation serving disabled participants through clubs, leagues, and development pathways that overlap with WheelPower's coverage of wheelchair basketball.
• British Blind Sport: UK national disability sport charity for visually impaired people. Comparable as a UK-wide disability sport charity providing sport opportunities, events, and pathways analogous to WheelPower's wheelchair sport portfolio.
• Back Up Trust: UK charity for people with spinal cord injury. Comparable in serving the same spinal injury population that WheelPower reaches through its spinal injury unit partnerships, with overlapping rehabilitation and reinmission support services.
• Special Olympics Great Britain: UK branch of the Special Olympics movement providing year-round sports training and competition for people with intellectual disabilities. Comparable as a national disability sport organisation delivering multi-sport programmes and competitions across the UK.

Regional players

• Disability Sport Wales: National disability sport organisation for Wales, providing sport pathways and events for disabled people. Comparable as a UK-nation-level disability sport body with similar grassroots-to-competitive programming and parallel mission to WheelPower's UK footprint.
• Scottish Disability Sport: Scottish national disability sport organisation delivering community sport opportunities north of the border. Comparable as a disability sport NGB serving a UK nation, paralleling WheelPower's England-focused delivery but operating in a separate geographic jurisdiction.

Broad incumbents

• ParalympicsGB: British Paralympic Association, the national body that selects and sends Great Britain athletes to the Paralympic Games. Comparable in being a UK-wide Paralympic-focused organisation sharing WheelPower's heritage and high-performance ecosystem, though focused on elite rather than grassroots participation.
• Sport England: UK government arms-length body distributing National Lottery and public funding to sport, including disability sport. Comparable as the funder/partner WheelPower is aligned with, operating across all sport types and the broader inclusion agenda.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/wheelpower
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/WheelPowerVideos
• Facebookfacebook.com/wheelchairsport
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wheelpower-british-wheelchair-sport
• Instagraminstagram.com/wheelpower_official
• TikToktiktok.com/@wheelpower_official

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about WheelPower