Researching the current Barriers and Facilitators Influencing Participation in Exercise within an Adolescent, Cerebral Palsy Population: An Exploratory, Secondary Analysis Study.

Research Questions: 1. What are the main barriers and facilitators to exercise identified by UK adolescent Cerebral Palsy populations? 2. What differences does the educational environment attended by adolescent Cerebral Palsy populations have on why or why not physical activity is carried out? Design: An exploratory, secondary analysis study using data collated from a previously conducted, self-reported questionnaire. Participants: 16 adolescents with Cerebral Palsy, (male: 9, female: 7), aged 11-18 years, (mean = 13.4, SD = 1.41) recruited with severity of disability GMFCS I -V (median III, IQR = 1.00). Results: Adolescents reported numerous barriers and facilitators which affected their participation in physicalactivities. It was found that barriers caused by the limiting physical and cognitive effects of Cerebral Palsy provided the highest barrier for the population. Facilitators to activity were broad and focused mainly on the positive intrinsic effects of exercise felt by the adolescents. School settings provided wide ranging results.bsc_Phyunpub2439_ethesesunpu