Channel 4 and The Paris Paralympics 2024

Channel 4

Channel 4 set out to make the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games a landmark moment for disability inclusion, building on – and surpassing – the societal impact of previous Games.

Our ambition was to shift public attitudes towards disability, improve the lives of disabled people of all ages and to bring disabled voices and stories to the mainstream. To achieve this, we embedded inclusion throughout every element of Channel 4’s coverage of the Paris Paralympics, delivering a campaign before, during and after the Games that connected audiences with impactful messaging, leveraged social media and created memorable moments of engagement with the public and stakeholders.

Our bold, joined-up campaign – spanning media, politics and public life – used the national moment of the Games as a catalyst and opportunity to deliver societal change where it is needed most and resulted in real-world outcomes including record-breaking public engagement with inclusive sports and a new Government policy to tackle disability inequality in schools. Our campaign is a great example of what good communications can achieve: 19.5 million viewers, including Channel 4’s biggest ever Paralympic share of young audiences; a measurable shift in public perceptions of disability with 94% of viewers saying that the Paralympics positively shifted perceptions of disabled people; and 83,000 more people getting access to inclusive sports.

Paris 2024 showed that with ambition, purpose and authenticity, a Games held abroad can have the impact of one held at home – not just celebrating the Paralympics but changing the way Britain sees disability.