British Judo and University Partnership Features in Sport England case-study
February 27, 2026
Last week British Judo hosted a workshop for Sport England’s case-study of their “Finding your Feet”, fall safely programme, for older people and others at risk of falls.
Facilitated by Ipsos Mori, the workshop brought together British Judo partners from many facets of judo, wider sport, exercise and health organisations, and academics, including Dr Tina Smith (Senior Lecturer in Biomechanics) from the University of Wolverhampton.
Originally developed by Prof Mike Callan (University of Hertfordshire) and Dr Katrina McDonald (Anglia Ruskin University), the Finding your Feet programme focuses on judo techniques intended to reduce the risk of injury from falls by teaching participants how to fall and land more safely. British Judo Development Director, Karen Roberts, has successfully overseen the roll-out of the programme and embraced new ideas and opportunities along the way. Leading to the application of the programme to Parkinson’s disease with Dr Tina Smith and fostering many other successful collaborations.
As a result of the programme’s success and the numerous and diverse partnerships it has generated, ‘Finding your Feet’ was selected by Sport England to be one of their featured case-studies. The aim of the workshop was to discuss and evidence how British Judo have worked collaboratively with partners to deliver the Finding your Feet programme.
The University of Wolverhampton collaborated with British Judo to deliver the “Finding your Feet with Parkinson’s” programme, following funding from Parkinson’s UK.
Dr Tina Smith said, “Parkinson’s disease puts people at a higher risk of falling so I was thrilled that British Judo agreed to work with me to explore the application of Finding your Feet to people living with Parkinson’s. It was a privilege to be asked to be part of this Sport England workshop, and it really illustrated the extent of the partners involved and the wide reach ‘Finding your Feet’ has already.
The shared passion of everyone involved in the workshop was evident. We are currently exploring ways to deliver more Finding your Feet with Parkinson’s courses, and I am looking forward to continuing this partnership with British Judo to expand and research the benefits of the programme.”
Karen Roberts (Development Director) from British Judo said, “We know that judo has wide ranging benefits to British Society, learning how to fall safely is one of them. It has been a privilege to see this programme grow and benefit those who would have never considered that basic judo principles could enhance their lives people.”
Prof Mike Callan (Professor of Judo Education, University of Hertfordshire) continues to promote the wider benefits of judo through his research and coaching.
“We are grateful to Sport England and British Judo for their investment and support for our research that leads to reduction of injuries for older adults that suffer a fall. There are huge impacts of the application of judo falling techniques within society and I am sure that this focused case study by Sport England will lead to further impacts and reduced hospital admissions.”
Examples of existing Sport England case-studies can be found here https://www.sportengland.org/funds-and-campaigns/case-studies
