Cerebral Palsy Scotland

Annual Review – what we’ve been doing to help

Cerebral Palsy Scotland has published a round-up of how we have supported people with CP and their families over the past year and a half.

Our latest Annual Review sets out what the charity has achieved between April 2019-March 2020. We have also included a section on how we have helped people over the coronavirus pandemic.

Between April 2019 – March 2020 we provided a total of 990 individual therapy sessions for children and adults with cerebral palsy, supporting people to build skills, confidence and knowledge of their condition. We ran therapy-led groups for people of all ages, hosted a national conference and trained health professionals.

We also continued our work looking at the state of mental health support for people with cerebral palsy and how we can use Clinical Psychology to enhance our own services.

Most visibly, in April 2020, Bobath Scotland changed name to Cerebral Palsy Scotland.

The arrival of coronavirus and national restrictions has led to big changes for the charity, but we are determined to keep supporting the CP community during these strange times. We are providing online information and videos, virtual therapy sessions, and have created a safe environment to allow us to provide hands-on therapy sessions.

Commenting on the publication of the Annual Review, Stephanie Fraser, CEO of Cerebral Palsy Scotland said:

“I am really proud that Cerebral Palsy Scotland has achieved so much over the past 18 months and helped hundreds of people with CP build skills, knowledge and confidence. Rebranding the charity has been a big step forward in raising the charity’s profile so that we can support even more people with cerebral palsy across the country in the future.

“As always, I want to extend my sincere thanks to the CP community, donors and funders for their continued support as we work harder than ever before to provide services for children and adults with CP.”

Download Annual Review 2019-20

Watch again – Conference 2020

It was wonderful to bring together so many people at the online conference to talk about issues facing people with CP, their families and the people who support them.

It was a busy and useful day even if we could not come together in person. We talked about COVID recovery, education, virtual sessions, employment and more.

We know not everyone who registered was able to attend, or attend all of the sessions and others are keen to watch some again. They are now available on our website here – Watch again.

The online exhibition is still live, please take a few minutes to have a look at films from partners too.

Please do get in touch if you have any questions or would like to arrange a free post lockdown session.

Contact us on 0141 352 500 or HERE

You can keep up to date on news and information by signing up for the newsletter or following us on social media.

Iain MacLeod: Wheels galore!

Writer Iain MacLeod talks about his experiences of growing up with cerebral palsy in the Western Isles.

Born in Stornoway, Lewis, Iain MacLeod now lives in the North East of Scotland. He has spent his life challenging expectations, studying, driving and living life in every way he can, including studying through the Open University.

Cherish each day and live it to the fullest extent possible. Every moment is precious, and not to be wasted. Life is for living, not waiting to live.

Iain tells the story of how he pursued his own learning and education, at a time when schools were very different than today. He also shares his advice for people with cerebral palsy and their parents.

I hope to inspire my readers to rise above the perceived limitations of disability and live life their way with grace, guts, and gusto!

Read some of Iain’s life story in Iain MacLeod – Wheels Galore blog

Visit Iain’s website and find out how to get a copy of his new book Wheels Galore!: Adaptive Cars, Wheelchairs, and a Vibrant Daily Life with Cerebral Palsy where he tells stories of his life with a kinds of wheels from wheelchairs to cars: https://www.wheelsgalore.scot 

World CP Day: What can you achieve?

The Biggest Achievement in My Life: Marion remembers the boost of achieving a goal and getting a qualification.

Our volunteer, Marion has written a blog about her experiences of studying a computing course at college while talking about how CP didn’t stop her from achieving her goal. Thank you to Marion for this wonderful blog, a perfect read ahead of World CP Day, read what she has to say:

Hello everyone,  I hope everyone is well  and keeping safe.

As Cerebral Palsy Day 2020 is approaching us,  I thought I would share with you  my greatest achievement in my life. This blog might encourage you to take up something new!

When I was 18 and when I finished school I went to my local College to do my ECDL (European Computer Driving Licence) .  My dad managed to get me on the course by talking to the College and they agreed to have me on the course. I loved being a student  with a disability as I was in a class with mostly able bodied students.

I enjoyed going to College  by myself with a support worker, I felt it was a great opportunity for me to do something independently. The College was very accessible and I liked going to the café and meeting my friend.

I got excellent help from the College’s unit for people with disabilities. The special needs advisor helped me set up my Intellikeys keyboard  so I was able to use their  PCs.  They even fought for me to get extra time for my exams, that took time,   but we got there in the end. Although I was later than all the rest of the students to take  my exams, I was the 3rd top student in the class.

I had always been interested in computers so the ECDL was right up my street. I started on my first computer when I was 3 years old when my Dad set me up on a BBC B computer.

When I did this course 18 years ago, there were 7 modules which included, Word  Processing, Spreadsheets, and Information and Communication.

Then after my ECDL was finished I got a lovely surprise and won The Provost’s Community Award  for Special Needs Adult, The prize was a trip to  London and while there I went to see Chitty Chitty  Bang Bang

I have used my skills that I have learnt from doing the ECDL to work in 2 offices,  and had my own little business making stationery.

Having Cerebral Palsy didn’t stop me from achieving a European Certificate for my computer work, and my advice to anyone who is thinking of doing something that you are wanting to do is to keep at it. You never know what you can do!

Marion Burns, 29th September 2020

Marion award photo

World Cerebral Palsy Day

What is it? How can you make your mark?

Bernie World CP DayOctober is usually the month of Halloween, but did you know that there is a very important day before it? Yes, that’s right – it is World Cerebral Palsy Day on the 6th! The special day is to raise awareness about the disability which affects 17 million people, around the world. There are many ways that you can show your support for World CP Day.

We all know that the world is a very different place this year due to the pandemic but we can still support Cerebral Palsy, in our own way. World CP Day is a great opportunity to tell people what the disability means and to make people aware that CP doesn’t stop anyone from achieving amazing things in life. The campaign for this year’s event is called ‘Make Your Mark’ which encourages people to share their achievements and experiences of living with CP.

There are many different ways that you can Make Your Mark:

  • Share your story of CP by going to the ‘World CP Day’ website and adding your story to the map
  • Share an achievement you have accomplished- old or new
  • Going green for CP by wearing the colour green or decorating your home in green as part of the #GoGreen4CP campaign which we have seen, in recent years

A big part of World Cerebral Palsy Day aims to make sure that everyone has easy access to support services, this is extra important this year. “To mark this day in support of Cerebral Palsy, I will be making my mark by creating a video to share my story of living with CP which will be posted on social media. I want to get the word out there that having CP, doesn’t stop me from doing what I want to do, yes life can be challenging but I always find a way”- Bernie Hunter

We at Cerebral Palsy Scotland would love to know what you are doing to mark World CP Day, let us know by going to our social media channels- we are ‘@CpScotland’ on Twitter & ‘@Cerebralpalsyscotland’ on Facebook.

Come on let’s raise awareness and turn the world green for Cerebral Palsy on October 6th 2020!  #MakeYourMark #GoGreen4CP