Cerebral Palsy Scotland

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Cerebral Palsy Scotland partners with Slater and Gordon

To help sustain our vital services, Cerebral Palsy Scotland has secured new funding for our support work through a new partnership with Slater and Gordon. The law firm works widely with families across Scotland who live with Cerebral Palsy, and also is a longstanding partner of Cerebral Palsy Scotland’s sister charity in Wales, CP Cymru.

“Support services are absolutely vital for people living with Cerebral Palsy and our ambition is to help as many people as we possibly can,” says Stephanie Fraser, CEO of Cerebral Palsy Scotland.

“We want to be the lynchpin for people and families across Scotland to access what they need, and our support service is hugely important in us delivering this. We are committed to raising awareness around Cerebral Palsy, both in terms of generally in society, and also in educating and supporting families. It’s lovely to see them developing their skills and knowledge of the condition, so they can be confident parents to their child despite the additional challenges they face.

“Through this fantastic partnership with Slater and Gordon, we are able to sustain our support service, and will look to develop it further as we grow as a charity. The services families want and need continue to evolve, and we want to be in a position to deliver what they need.”

Derek Couper, head of clinical negligence in Scotland for Slater and Gordon, says: “Cerebral Palsy Scotland plays an outstanding role in helping people across the country affected by the condition, and without them, tailored support would be very hard to come by. Their own research shows the struggle that people experience in finding the resources and understanding they need to navigate their lives – which makes the work of this charity absolutely invaluable.

“We are very pleased to partner with Cerebral Palsy Scotland and to help to sustain its support service, which plays such a vital role in the lives of so many individuals and families. We look forward to working with Stephanie and her team going forward to maximise support for people across the country living with this condition.”

Key insights from the Cerebral Palsy Scotland community survey 2025

Between January-March 2025, Cerebral Palsy Scotland ran a survey to get insight into the key challenges facing the cerebral palsy community, as well as feedback on the charity’s services.

Some of the key insights are below.

Read the full survey summary

Outside of Cerebral Palsy Scotland, support for people with cerebral palsy is limited

The survey highlighted that you are struggling to access a range of condition-specific support. Outside of Cerebral Palsy Scotland:
91% are not able to access psychological support for their cerebral palsy
81% are not able to access groups for people with cerebral palsy
45% are not able to access individual therapy

Raising awareness about cerebral palsy is very important to you

The survey showed that respondents greatly valued all of Cerebral Palsy Scotland’s services, and that you want Cerebral Palsy Scotland to offer a wide range of services.

The ‘top five’ services that respondents said were ‘extremely important’ or ‘important’ to them were:

  • Awareness raising about cerebral palsy (96%)
  • Information about cerebral palsy (92%)
  • General advice/support from our Cerebral Palsy Support Coordinator (92%)
  • Training and webinars for professionals that support people with cerebral palsy (92%)
  • In-person therapy (90%)

When asked the question, ’What are the things you wish other people knew about cerebral palsy?’ the most common theme that emerged was a desire for people across society to be more educated about cerebral palsy, and how it impacts those who live with the condition.

Lack of health care services and therapy support is a key concern

When asked, ‘What would be the most important issue for Cerebral Palsy Scotland to campaign and/or raise awareness on?’ the most common theme that emerged was the lack of health care services and therapy support, including the need for more funding so there can be better access to specialist services.

Thank you and next steps

Thank you to everyone who took the time to respond to the survey.

Cerebral Palsy Scotland is committed to listening to feedback from the community. We will continue to work to develop our services to ensure they meet people’s needs, and to reflect the community’s views in our policy and campaigning work.

 

My university experience so far

My name is Rachel Collie, and I am 20 years old. I have Spastic Diplegia Cerebral Palsy. For me this means that I am a full-time wheelchair user, unable to walk as well as a milder impact on my arms and hands. I have been a Cerebral Palsy Scotland service user for nearly 18 years.

I am currently a third year student studying Business Management at Glasgow Caledonian University. This Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month I thought it was important for me to share what my university experience with cerebral palsy has been like so far, both the good and the bad.

There are a lot of worries that come with starting university and living with CP. My main worries were wheelchair access, space in lecture and seminar halls, fire exits and the location of toilets, and support arrangements.

I love the university experience overall! I really enjoy lectures because they allow you to gain the basic knowledge around a broad topic, which then allows me to carry out my own research to gain a deeper understanding of the topic I have a specific interest in or that will benefit me in my future coursework as well as my career.

I enjoy seminars because they have, and still do allow me to meet new friends as well as learning about different points of view on a certain topic through having really interesting conversations with people from all walks of life.

If I am being totally honest, I was very anxious about starting university which is totally normal for anyone but not least for someone with cerebral palsy with all the extra worries that it comes with. Certainly, part of the reason for my worry about starting was about support. At school I was used to one-to-one support which was fully organised for me with no say from me. A lot of people will view that as a negative which I also did at the time by the way! However, I was yet to realise how difficult it can be to find a personal assistant (PA) that could meet my needs as well as both of us getting along really well.

At university you have a disability advisor who supports you with recruiting someone to support you along with completing the application for funding for your PAs and any equipment needed. They also liaise with the funding body if there are any additional items needed.

One of the main difficulties in my experience of finding a PA is that most PAs are either self-employed or employed by an agency. Why can this be a problem you may ask? It can be hard because of their employment status – they have the opportunity to pick exactly what ‘shifts’ they would like to do meaning if there is a ‘shift’ they don’t want to work they have no obligation to! This can mean needing more than one PA may be much more likely, to be able to make sure that all your university timetable can be covered.

Another difficulty is the university timetable itself. This is because every trimester when you are given a new timetable there is not much advance notice of the timetable before the new term begins. This is difficult because it means both me and my PAs have no ability to plan our lives as I can’t give them advance notice of the hours I require them to work. This may mean that I lose out because my PAs have already booked other work as they are self-employed and need to make sure they have enough work to maintain a good income. If this happens, I have to use an agency to find a PA who is able to support me at university. This may sound scary, but I have found a reliable agency who have always supported me to the best of their ability. It’s not as scary as you think, if you are at university and need to use an agency. To find support my advice would be to use one which is well known as having a large number of staff because this will mean it is more likely that they will have a member of staff who is able to meet your needs and who you get along well with. If you don’t get on with someone don’t feel pressure to keep working with them. Let the agency know and they will help you to find someone more suited to you.

Although it may seem that my university experience has been mostly negative that is definitely not the case! There are, and have been, lots of positives. One of the main positives is that I have found two amazing PAs who I get on with so well and who have made a positive difference to my whole university experience! Another positive is that my PAs allow me to be more independent and experience things I would not have been able to without them. And my final positive that I feel I need to share with you comes from my university experience is the friends that I have made. I have made friends for life! Its amazing to have great friends who have the same passion as you.

Even though there have been negatives with my university journey overall university has been both a positive and exciting experience! So go ahead and don’t be put off by thinking it will be difficult because you happen to have a disability.

What would make the move to university easier for disabled students would be a proper transition programme to allow the items I have mentioned to be sorted/explored before university begins. This would make the move much more enjoyable and increase the excitement to going to university.

I hope this article helps you realise that you can attend and enjoy university with cerebral palsy.

How I use Exercise as an Alternative to Physiotherapy – Mark Brown

Hi, my name is Mark, I am 53 years old, striving through life with Cerebral Palsy (CP).  My CP affects all parts of my body with my left arm mostly affected with involuntary movements; additionally, it impacts on my dexterity, coordination and balance.  I walk independently although I do require a build-up on my right shoe.

From my childhood I have always been physically active enjoying trying to play football and games like Hide ’n’ Seek or Tig, with my peers at school and in the local community.  When I was about 9 years old, I finally mastered riding a two-wheeler bike. From then on, I loved my bike and would cycle everywhere.   As I was growing up, right through to mid-secondary school, I had regular physiotherapy, and my parents also encouraged me to do my exercises.

Fast forward 25 years or so, during which time I was at college, university and in employment.  Every so often I would tap into physiotherapy and try to stay as active as possible.  As shown here, I have always viewed physical activity as an important way of staying well and active.

In my 40’s I started to notice some changes in my Cerebral Palsy such as pain, increasing involuntary movements and getting slower at doing everything.  This led to me having to leave employment in 2017.

I have since focused on maintaining my strength, balance and coordination through attending the Glasgow Club at Bellahouston gym, and Palace of Arts.

Pilates

Following attending physiotherapy, I started attending a Pilates class which was recommended by the physio.  I attended a class weekly up until Covid struck.  Following Covid, I resumed attending Pilates on a Tuesday, with an instructor called Sylvia. I explained to Sylvia that I have CP, how it affects me and that I am fully aware of my limitations, therefore she need not be concerned about me injuring myself and I don’t require any extra guidance of support. Through time we have developed a good understanding and respect. Pilates has greatly benefitted me since it works all areas of the body helping stretch my muscles and build strength.  Like anyone attending the class, there are some exercises that are more difficult than others. What I do in this situation is adapt the exercise into something that I can do, or Sylvia will give me a hint.  Most of the time Sylvia gives the class different variations of the exercise since everyone attending the class is all at different levels.  The pace of the class suits me, however, if I need a short break I will take it.

Yoga

The Pilates class moved to a 09.15 start during the winter, so I asked Sylvia if I could try the Yoga Class, which she takes following the Pilates class. During winter I feel the later time is more manageable.  We agreed, so since November I have attended Yoga.  I find the Yoga a lot more challenging than Pilates.  Yoga focuses more on balance and strength.  As my balance presents me with challenges, I find the Yoga tougher than Pilates.  With some of the exercises I need to be more creative in adapting to something that’s achievable for me.  For example, I will balance on one knee while others are standing on one leg, yet I still wobble. During this class, I do take a few more breaks as the exercises work my balance and concertation more, but overall, it’s an achievable class. Both Sylvia and I have noticed improvements.

Core Stability

Due to my CP, the physiotherapist at Cerebral Palsy Scotland advised me that I have a weak core, and this was backed up by the Consultant I see at the NRU.  I looked up the classes at the Glasgow Club and found a class called Core Stability.  I discussed this with my GP, with whom I have a positive relationship.  She thought the class would be at a good level for myself, as it will challenge me.  I elected for a class at lunchtime on a Saturday and spoke with Viv the instructor; providing the relevant information about my CP and that my GP agreed that it was an appropriate class to try.  I started the class in June and have been attending since.  I do find the class hard – but very rewarding.  The class works all aspects of the body focusing on strengthening the core. In particular, it works the back and the legs hard.   The exercises include things like squats, sit-ups, planks and many more. The tempo of this class is fast, but as before I go at my own pace.  Basically, I do all the exercises but not the number of repetitions as the instructor aims for due to it taking me longer to reposition myself.  Like the other classes, there are some exercises which I need to adapt myself or with some instruction from Viv.  Due to the intensity of the class, I do need to take some breaks.   Along with Viv, I have noticed improvements in my abilities over the last 9 month.  At the end of the class I always feel a great sense of achievement.

Gym

Presently I attend the Gym weekly, normally after yoga.  I use the gym equipment to build my upper and lower body strength.  I do at times find this a bit boring and repetitive compared with the classes I attend.   I do keep going as its important to use weights to retain and possibly build my arms, core, and leg muscles.

Benefits I get from Exercise

Regular exercise has bought the following benefits:

  • I am now able to sit on floor with straight legs without support
  • Slightly improved posture
  • Stronger core
  • Improved balance
  • Sense of accomplishment
  • Better mental health: exercise helps improve mood
  • Better sleep quality
  • Reduced pain in some areas

Considerations when looking for Exercise

It is important to know what you want to achieve from exercise.  As a starting point see if your GP, or other health professional, can refer you to your local gym.  Gyms that are operated/funded by Local Authorities will have some form of special advisor who can guide you.  I would urge you to consider the following:

  • Your physical abilities
  • Your ability to follow and memorise instructions
  • What activities you enjoy

 

To benefit from exercise, it is important that you find something that is achievable yet challenging for you.  For example, an instructor covering the Core Stability asked if I fancied trying their HIIT class, yet I knew after 5 minutes it was not for me (although I did stay for the duration.)    At the end I explained to the instructor that the constant use of a Step was too difficult for me, and I felt I would risk falling, plus the intensity of the class was very high.  So be aware of and accept your limitations.

 

The Future

As I grow older with CP, and the additional unknown challenges that will occur, I aim to remain as physically active as possible.  I enjoy all the classes that I participate in currently.  During the summer months I am likely to go back to the Pilates opposed to Yoga and keep the Core Stability going.  In an ideal world I would attend all three classes(!) however, Pilates and Yoga are in high demand.  Although I find the gym a bit boring, I will keep going due to the benefits from attending.  I am also open to trying new classes if anyone has any suggestions?  I would like to thank Sylvia & Viv for giving me the opportunity to participate in exercise classes which challenge me but bring great benefits in managing my Cerebral Palsy.