News

Eight-in-10 people claim losing their disability living allowance (DLA) will drive them into isolation, a coalition of 90 disabled people’s groups says.  In a survey of more than 4,500 UK disabled people, the Hardest Hit campaign found nine in 10 fear the DLA loss will be bad for their health. Read More »

This morning, I woke up feeling good, with no pain or stiffness or numbness. Putting in my contact lenses gave me 20/20 vision and, when I saw my bus coming around the corner, I was able to run for it without falling over. Read More »

Ten years ago a British man with terminal cancer travelled to Switzerland and drank a lethal solution of barbiturates to end his life, with his son and daughter by his side.  He was the first of more than 180 Britons to be assisted to die Read More »

A tallship with a disabled crew has set off on a 50,000-mile voyage around the globe.  The Jubilee Sailing Trust (JST) ship Lord Nelson left Southampton on Trafalgar Day.  A crew of 50 people, of mixed physical abilities, including wheelchair Read More »

More than 1,000 people have taken part in an anti-austerity rally in Belfast, in protest at cuts being introduced by the government at Westminster.  The rally was organised by the Northern Ireland Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU).  Health workers, civil servants, teachers Read More »

A march has taken place in Glasgow in protest at public spending cuts.  It coincided with demonstrations in London and Belfast, where thousands of people gathered to call for an end to austerity measures.  Protesters called on the government to focus instead on creating policies which they said could create growth. Read More »

Exactly three years ago Sergeant Simon Harmer was a month into a tour of Afghanistan when he stepped on a roadside bomb during a routine patrol. His right leg was blown off and his left leg had to be amputated back at camp.  On Thursday however, 36-year-old Harmer was taking Read More »

Police are hunting a reckless vandal who cut the brakes on a disabled man’s mobility scooter.  Graham Parkinson, 36, who broke his back in a go-karting accident in 2009, was shocked to discover the brake cables on his disability vehicle had been severed – putting his safety and that of other pedestrians at risk.  Mr Parkinson, who has extremely limited ... Read More »

Edinburgh Leisure have organised a High Flyers Launch Event to give young people with disabilities a taste of different sports. The event will take place on Saturday 27thOctober, 10am – 1pm at the Meadowbank Sport Centre, London Road, Edinburgh, EH7 6AE. High Flyers is an exciting new programme of disability sport for under 18s. The High Flyer Launch event offers anyone who attends on ... Read More »

Coronation Street star Brooke Vincent has confessed how hard it was to glimpse life with a disability, in preparation for her shocking new storyline. The 20-year-old actress plays troubled teenager Sophie Webster, who faces the possibility of never being able to walk again after injuring her spine in a car accident next week. Viewers will see Sophie try to save friend ... Read More »

A 17-year-old boy who assaulted another teenager using the boy’s own crutches has been let off with a warning by the Crown Prosecution Service.  Angus Whittall, 15, suffered multiple facial injuries after he was viciously attacked walking on a quiet country lane near his home in Great Oxendon, Northamptonshire.  Despite identifying his attacker, who is known to the police, Angus and ... Read More »

Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients sometimes experience “natural” improvements in disability at least over the short term, according to a new study led by researchers at the University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute. The study, published this month in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal, is the first to quantify improvements in disability in patients who are not taking Read More »