Wednesday’s budget brought to light that more cuts were on the horizon for disabled people. An estimated £1.3bn is going to be cut, affecting about 640,000 people across the country.

The Guardian has reported that 200,000 people will be removed from the Personal Independence Payments (PIP) system altogether and further 400,000 will have their benefits cut from the enhanced rate of £82 per week to the standard rate of £55. To put that into perspective that calculates to losing £1400 per year.

This has sparked anger and a huge amount of worry and many disabled people have voiced their opinions. Alex Brooker, co-presenter of the Last Leg, has called for Iain Duncan Smith to try to live of £73 per week to see how he copes. Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson has made an emotive plea to urge them to consider the implications of the affects of the cuts of the mental health of disabled people. The list goes on.

We want to know your thoughts on this, how will you be affected?

Email ros@2apublishing.co.uk or share your thoughts on Facebook.

By Rosalind Tulloch

To find out more about Ros, or the rest of the PosAbility team visit the Meet The Team section

Channel 4 has commissioned Princess Productions, part of the Endemol Shine Group, to produce The Superhumans Show – a brand new magazine show, covering all things Paralympics.

The Superhumans Show comes to Channel 4 as the ParalympicsGB team prepares to take on the world at Rio 2016. This series will help build on the success of London 2012 as well increase awareness in the run up to the Games taking place later this summer. The show will be joining Britain’s elite Paralympians as they push themselves to the limit to break personal bests and strive for podium glory.

The first run of the series will launch on Saturday 27 February.

This weekly magazine show will be hosted by broadcaster and comedian Alex Brooker (The Last Leg) who will be joined by new and established Paralympic presenting talent as he meets celebrity guests and legends from the world of Paralympic sport.

Each week, The Superhumans Show will feature the latest news from Paralympic qualifying events around the world and profile the established and emerging talent that will be going for gold later this summer – plus it will bring  viewers up-to-date with the heroes from London 2012. With challenges in the studio and guest presenters out on location, The Superhumans Show will be in the heart of the action as anticipation builds for The Paralympics in Brazil, showcasing all the different sports taking place at Rio and explaining the Paralympic classification system.

Alex Brooker said: ‘’The London 2012 Paralympic Games were incredible and showed just what a fantastic event it really is.

“I can’t wait for Rio in six months’ time! I look forward to getting reacquainted with the Superhumans and in some cases introducing the public to them for the first time. I can’t wait to get started!”

Steve Lyle, Commissioning Editor Sport, Channel 4, said: ‘“This could be the greatest year ever for Paralympic sport in Britain and The Superhumans Show will be the essential  one-stop shop for all you need to know about the athletes looking to make history in Rio.”

Emma Hardy, Princess Productions managing director, added: ‘Whilst increasing awareness of this summer’s eagerly anticipated Paralympics, The Superhumans Show will be enlightening, funny and inspirational. Viewers will be in for an action-packed show of comedy, entertainment and news. We’re thrilled to be making this series for Channel 4.”

It will be executive produced at Princess Productions by Andy Price and Joint Heads of Programmes, Anna Blue and Will Spokes. It will be series produced by Patrick Ruddy.

Allianz Insurance has been announced as a major sponsor of the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games on 4. As the first of two core sponsors, Allianz will sponsor a range of programmes across Channel 4 leading up to the Games and will then sponsor all live coverage once the games are underway. They are also funding a new original Shorts series on All 4 as part of Channel 4’s online coverage of the games.

The British Paralympic Association today urged the British public to help ‘Supercharge ParalympicsGB’ and show their support for our athletes over the course of 2016 and beyond.

Supercharge ParalympicsGB is the first time that the British Paralympic Association (BPA) has launched such a major public facing campaign to generate support and raise funds for ParalympicsGB.

The ParalympicsGB team will face its toughest competition yet in Rio with standards increasing across all sports among other nations and that is likely to become even harder over coming Games. Following a home games in London the team also faces a decade of long haul travel – with upcoming Games in Rio, Pyeongchang, Tokyo and Beijing. It will be more challenging and expensive than ever before for the BPA to support athletes that in turn can inspire real change across society through their performances.

The BPA, a registered charity, has historically received some public fundraising support but the ‘Supercharge ParalympicsGB’ campaign will take this to a whole new level and a major drive to fundraise money to help take ParalympicsGB to Rio and beyond. Alongside the fantastic support already received from the National Lottery and the BPA’s commercial partners, the funds raised will help best prepare the team in the crucial final days before Rio and lay the ground for future success.

Supercharge ParalympicsGB is being supported by the BPA’s blue chip commercial sponsors and by four high-profile Ambassadors:

Paralympic legend and BPA patron Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson expressed her strong support for the campaign, saying:

“The Rio 2016 Paralympic Games will be the toughest, most competitive Games yet and ParalympicsGB will need to be the best it’s ever been to win the medals the nation craves. The team needs as much support and preparation as possible in the final crucial months of preparation to win those medals and ensure Great Britain continues to be a leading force in Paralympic sport over the next decade. I am delighted to be part of this campaign to ask the British public to give its support.”  

Fellow BPA Patron and disability sport supporter Clare Balding is also one of the Supercharge ambassadors. She said: “Paralympic sport goes from strength to strength and we saw in London just how much the British public got behind the ParalympicsGB team. I know that ParalympicsGB will absolutely enthrall and excite the British public again this summer. But to do so they will need to make sure that everything they do is world-class so that they can produce those world class performances.”

Actor and comedian Eddie Izzard is a long-term supporter of diversity and a keen athlete. He commented: “London 2012 showed the nation that the Paralympic Games and the ParalympicsGB team are the most inspiring team in the UK. Their success this summer will inspire the nation, continue to challenge perceptions and ultimately help create a better world for disabled people. But to do that the public needs to get behind the team and help to fund their success through donations and fundraising.”

Alex Brooker, who has co-presented the Last Leg TV programme on Channel 4 since London 2012, said: “The Paralympics in London were amazing, but the Paralympics in Rio looks set to be even more so. I can’t wait for this summer so that I do my bit to support and promote the ParalympicsGB team on Channel 4, but the public can help support them now.”

Tim Hollingsworth, Chief Executive of the British Paralympic Association, said of the launch: “We want to leave no stone unturned in our efforts to win medals and make the nation proud in Rio and beyond. That means getting the public and our partners involved to help to Supercharge the team to make the ParalympicsGB team as successful and inspiring to others as possible.

“We have incredible support already from the National Lottery and UK Sport, but the crucial final part of the journey to Rio requires as much funding as possible to ensure the team are ready for success.  That is why we are launching this campaign and asking the public for its support.  How far all our athletes go depends on you!”

The Supercharge ParalympicsGB campaign launch includes the release of a new inspiring campaign film and some iconic imagery of ParalympicsGB stars including Jonnie Peacock, Ali Jawad, Jordanne Whiley, Libby Clegg and Will Bayley.

The campaign also offers the public a Text to Donate facility – TEXT “SUPER” to 70700 – and a wide range of fundraising tools and equipment.

All the above can be found at the Supercharge campaign website: www.paralympics.org.uk/supercharge

The campaign has been developed from the start with the fantastic pro bono support of major London creative agency RKCR/Y&R.  Their strategic and creative expertise is central to the campaign’s delivery in 2016. 

Photo Courtesy of Channel 4

Channel 4, in partnership with Scope, has commissioned a brand new advertiser funded Shorts series What Not To Do starring Alex Brooker, the disability charity’s ambassador and star of Channel 4 show The Last Leg.

The six, three 3 minute short form series launches exclusively on All 4 for Channel 4’s digital Shorts platform and will be available to view in early August. Each episode sees Alex Brooker react to different scenarios via hidden camera set-ups exposing onlookers’ awkwardness around disability.

All six episodes exemplify how not to behave in situations including a blind date, a job interview and at the hairdressers and represent real life situations based on research from Scope.

The new Shorts are part of Scope’s End the Awkward campaign which launched last year. The campaign aims to tackle attitudes to disability, by shining a light on the awkwardness that many people feel around disabled people.

Mark Atkinson, interim chief executive at disability charity Scope, said: “Scope research shows that two-thirds of people feel awkward around disability. This is because not enough people know or interact with disabled people.

“The adverts that launched Scope’s End the Awkward campaign in 2014, fronted by Alex Brooker, showed a series of awkward scenarios viewers may encounter with a disabled person.

“For our partnership with Channel 4 this year, we wanted the short films to take awkwardness to the next level.

“Our campaign uses humour so that we can raise the issue in a light-hearted way, because it isn’t about pointing fingers.

“We hope the shorts will start conversations about disability and get us all thinking about what we can do to include disabled people more in our lives.”

Look out for the Shorts in August this year on All 4, or to find out more about Scope’s End the Awkward campaign which has returned for Summer 2015, check out their website.

Known for his award-winning witty comedy panel show, The Last Leg, which he presents alongside Adam Hills and Josh Widdicombe, Brooker, who wears a prosthetic leg, will open the show and share his journey since bursting onto our screens when he reported on the Paralympics on 29 April at 12.15pm.

Having started out on hit children’s TV show Grange Hill, Martinez has since made many TV appearances, including Russell Howard’s Good News, The Jonathan Ross Show and Loose Women. Martinez, who is affected by Cerebral Palsy and is currently touring, will perform her latest comedy routine, closing the show on 1 May.

Matthew Tingey, event director for Naidex National, said: “We’re thrilled to have Alex and Francesca on board. Personally, I’m a huge fan of theirs and think they’re a great addition to what is shaping up to be an exciting show in its fortieth anniversary. This year, we also have Claire Lomas speaking, who walked the London Marathon in an exoskeleton and a flight simulator designed for people with disabilities from Aerobility. Not forgetting a huge range of experts and products and services all under one roof to help people achieve more independence.”

Dancing their way to Naidex, Strictly Wheels, aka Paula Moulton and Gary Lyness, will be performing on 29 April. Moulton and Lyness made their début on Britain’s Got Talent to an awed nation. They are now the UK’s first and only top class Latin Wheelchair Dance-sport couple.

Impey Showers will also welcome Gary Clarke, Britain’s strongest disabled man, onto their stand on day one. Gary will perform two incredible feats on the stand while seated in the redesigned Impey SlimFold shower seat, capable of bearing weight of up to 47 stone.

Taking place at the NEC Birmingham from 29 April to 1 May, the UK’s largest independent living event features a free conference for health and social care and an exhibition. Some of the biggest names in the industry will be on hand to offer expertise and guidance on all aspects of independent living.  Over 10,000 visitors are expected over the three days of Naidex.

Naidex National partners for 2014 include the British Healthcare Trades Association (BHTA), the College of Occupational Therapists (COT), the Disabled Living Foundation (DLF), the National Register of Access Consultants (NRAC), the Centre for Accessible Environments (CAE) and Foundations.

To see the full show programme and register for your complimentary ticket please go to www.naidex.co.uk. To discuss exhibition space and sponsorship opportunities at Naidex National, please contact the team on 0203 033 2273 or naidex@i2ieventsgroup.com.

“The reason I quit,” he says, “is because I’ve always grown up never having any other disabled mates. There weren’t any other disabled people at my secondary school, so it was quite weird to find myself pigeonholing myself as disabled… and I had a real issue with it.”

Click the play button to hear more.

A full length interview can be heard onSeptember’s disability talk show from Ouch – click for details and a transcript.

The Ouch talk show is available monthly to download or stream. Rob Crossan and Kate Monaghan present.

You can follow Ouch on Twitter and on Facebook, and listen to ourmonthly talk show

BBC

The Last Leg was a huge success during the Paralympics (Picture: Channel 4)

Presenter Alex Brooker, 28, helped make history with Paralympics comedy show The Last Leg. A new series starts tonight.

What’s the new series about?

It’s the stories people might have seen during the week and me, Adam Hills and Josh Widdicombe give our take on them. We also follow my journey to compete in the Rio Paralympics.

What will you be trying to do at Rio?

I don’t know yet. I went to an open day to try out the sports and we’re trying to find something I’m good at.

What’s the least popular Paralympic sport you might stand the best chance of qualifying for?

I don’t know. I was crap at wheelchair fencing, I was crap at powerlifting, I wasn’t very good at most of them to be honest – even the rubbish ones. I want to try wheelchair rugby, I could be quite good at that. It’s a really high standard. I thought I might walk into something but that wasn’t the case. I did rifle shooting before and was on the development squad but had to give up due to work commitments. I don’t think I’d be very good at it, though, as you have to sit and be quiet for an hour and a half.

Is it weird coming back with the show now that it doesn’t have the Paralympic Games link?

Not really. Me and Adam both have prosthetic legs, so you’ll have that aspect to it. It’s not all about disability, though.

The Paralympics were a big deal for Channel 4 but did it have a wider impact?

Definitely. It had hours and hours of coverage. The average person would probably have never seen a bloke with no arms swim before. It was an eye-opener for what the disabled can do. People got more familiar with disability, and the way we spoke about it on our show hadn’t been done before. Disabled people tweeted me to say they liked us treating it in a light-hearted way.

Everyone seems to have forgotten about the Olympics – is it the same with the Paralympics?

The challenge is once the Olympics is over, that’s it, done for four years – but you don’t want people forgetting about what they saw in the summer. There were more than 1,000 people at the disability sport open day in December, which shows the impact is still felt. I’m 28 and have been disabled all my life but now is the time I’ve felt most comfortable talking about it – that’s as a result of the Paralympics and The Last Leg. I got to tell anecdotes about my disability; people probably hadn’t heard someone talk about not being able to find their prosthetic leg after a one-night stand before.

The Is It OK? feature on the show was controversial. Will it be in the new series?

That’s coming back. We had things like: ‘Is it OK to chop my hand off so I can compete in the Paralympics in Rio?’ It isn’t really. If you chop your hand off it doesn’t mean you’ll be good at a sport. And: ‘Is it OK to ask how a swimmer with no arms gets out of the pool?’ I was intrigued by that myself. We had a clip of it – the guy shimmied himself up and had enough upper body strength to stand up. That changed perceptions. I’d have thought, unless he had help, he’d be left there bobbing about. That educates people. We had: ‘Is it OK to hit someone in the wheelchair if he’s a knob?’

What was the verdict?

If it’s a mate and it’s friendly banter, it’s OK to give him a hit if he’s being a knob. We don’t condone violence. You can’t just go up to a random bloke in a wheelchair in the street and hit him if you think he’s being a knob.

What’s your disability?

I have a prosthetic leg – my foot was amputated when I was 13 months old as I was born without a fibula. I’ve also got hand and arm ‘deformities’ but I prefer to call them ‘issues’.

Are you enjoying your new showbiz career?

Yes. I was a football journalist for six years before going to Channel 4. I thought I’d be out on my ear after the Paralympics and have to find another print journalism job but it turns out I’m still doing TV stuff. Channel 4 invested in our training. It took on disabled presenters for the Paralympics and has continued supporting us. We’ve got projects we’re talking about and I’m looking forward to doing more. I’m always laughing on The Last Leg – it’s a lot of fun. I went into the Paralympics as a disabled presenter and I’ve come out as a presenter who just happens to have disabilities. I want to continue doing stuff where I can be myself. I’ve also thought about doing stand-up – I can learn quite a bit from Adam and Josh.

You had to interview David Cameron on live TV in front of 11million viewers. What was that like?

I was the most nervous I’ve ever been – my first national live TV interview and I’m talking to the prime minster. If I’d have let the nerves get the better of me it would have gone t**s up and I wouldn’t be talking to you now. I was so nervous I was sick in the toilets before doing it. Then I interviewed Boris Johnson. David Cameron was all right but I’m a big fan of Boris – he’s a really fun interviewee.

The Last Leg starts on Channel 4 tonight at 9.30pm.

By The Metro