Paralympic Heritage Trust offers online tours during lockdown - with Stoke Mandeville legacy at its heart

The National Paralympic Heritage Trust has used 3D technology so that lockdown does not stop people from learning more about Stoke Mandeville's Paralympic legacy.

The Trust has created free virtual tours of its national exhibitions to help the public get up close to sporting history from the comfort of their own home.

Users can ‘walkthrough’ exhibition spaces and zoom in on specific artefacts or artwork, and are prompted to access video.

True to the spirit of the Paralympics the tours are completely accessible too, and users can access British Sign Language, text caption and audio-description options at points of interest.

The Heritage Centre in Stoke Mandeville has only been open for a year, and gives the chance to learn about the life and work of the father of the Paralympic movement, Professor Sir Ludwig Guttman.

Artefacts on display include his medals and teaching slides.

But the Paralympic Trust's work is not simply confined to Stoke Mandeville.

At Cartwright Hall in Bradford, which is also on the tour, you can hear first-hand about the inspirational Lady Susan Masham, who won medals at the first three Paralympic Games in the 1960s and whose ancestor funded the building of Cartwright Hall.

At Gunnersbury Park Museum you can learn about two young Paralympians Equestrian Natasha Baker and Fencer Dimitri Coutya, as well as listen to an interview with one of our most cherished Paralympians Caz Walton who participated in the Tokyo 1964 Games.

Nigel Purse, Chair of the NPHT, said, “Accessibility is at the heart of our work and the experience of our virtual visit bears comparison with those of any of the leading museums in the world”

More information can be found on the National Paralympic Heritage Trust website at:https://www.paralympicheritage.org.uk/Event/virtual-exhibitions