Disabled children's charity appeals for your equipment memories
Newlife The Charity for Disabled Children is celebrating 20 years since one of its most successful services began, offering grants to provide children with the specialist disability equipment they need. As part of their celebrations the charity would love to hear stories from local people who have been helped over the last two decades.
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Beginning life as BFD Newlife, the original focus was on raising funds to help research into birth defects. But as the years progressed it became apparent that there was a huge unmet need for families to receive equipment to keep children safe from potential harm, as well help meet their full potential - and that need continues to grow today.
Key to creating Newlife’s Equipment Grant Service was Newlife Consultant Nurse, Karen Dobson, who still works for Newlife. She said: “The Equipment Grant Service came into being when we were still BDF Newlife, and we began receiving numerous calls about seating systems. It quickly became apparent it was an issue in Cannock and Stafford – but little did we know how big the issue really was!
“We thought we would be providing all the nice things like bikes, trikes and toys to help disabled children, but we found the real issue was that disabled children couldn’t even get the basic equipment they needed. So, we began supporting them and, by doing so, also helping the NHS.”
Now Newlife has undergone one of their biggest changes to their equipment service since it began, moving to fund the four main pieces of equipment, beds, buggies, wheelchairs and car seats, so they can help more children than ever before.
Karen added: “I still have the same passion now for helping disabled children as I did back them – and I still see every single application for an Equipment Grant. The most rewarding thing is to know that we are truly making a difference to the children and families we support.
“Now, as we start to celebrate 20 years of this service that has helped so many children and their families, we would love to hear from the families themselves about the impact the equipment had on their lives, whether this meant they could play with their friends for the first time, were able to make magical childhood memories, or achieve something like going to college or university so they could pursue their dreams.”
If Newlife has made a difference to your life, or you child’s life, in the past 20 years then we would love to hear how we have been able to help you and the difference that equipment has made. You can send your stories to pr@newlifecharity.co.uk.
