Fundraising in lockdown: Your impact

1 July 2020

We’d like to take this opportunity to say thank you again to everyone that has been busy supporting our fundraising over the last few months.

Whether you have taken on a challenge like the Spinal Circuit, donated to our emergency appeal, or attended one of our virtual events, you have enabled us to continue providing vital support to people affected by spinal cord injury at a time when this is needed more than ever.

Read on to find out some of the ways your tireless support has helped us continue to transform the lives of people affected by spinal cord injury during the coronavirus pandemic.

Expanding and adapting our outreach service

People have been discharged from hospitals to their homes under lockdown, where they were isolated from loved ones and from traditional avenues of support. At the same time, many people with a spinal cord injury are shielding . Here at Back Up, our outreach team have been dealing with rising levels of calls from people who are isolated and afraid. The length and intensity of those calls reflect this. Your fundraising support means that our phone lines are still open for the people who need them.

Filming wheelchair skills videos

Your support helped us adapt quickly and develop new virtual services to replace face-to-face contact. Our YouTube channel now has a range of videos demonstrating vital wheelchair skills, created by our fantastic volunteers and outreach staff.

Thanks to your support, people now have instant access to tutorials that can help them boost their confidence in using a wheelchair. Ranging from basic pushing to transferring into a car, these videos mean that wheelchair users can learn essential skills to help them get around independently and safely.

Is there a particular wheelchair skill that helps you live life to the full? Feel free to film yourself showing off your skills safely and send it to us. We’d be happy to share your videos on our social media to inspire people in a similar situation.

New virtual services

At the start of the coronavirus pandemic, spinal centres across the UK were closed to visitors. Many newly injured people also went through accelerated discharges for their own safety. That means many people missed out on patient education on topics such as bladder and bowel management, skin care, and managing pain.

We launched new virtual services to make sure we can continue to be there for everyone affected by spinal cord injury. Your efforts mean that we can share vital knowledge with people in spinal centres with “Peer Support Live” virtual patient education sessions. We also have our “Back Up Lounge”, an online forum for everyone affected by spinal cord injury – including family members and loved ones. Your support enabled us to get these services up and running quickly.

Our life-changing services are driven by need. If the need for these services is still there after the coronavirus pandemic eases, we will continue to run our virtual services alongside our traditional support.

Now that you know the difference our fundraisers have made during the past few difficult months, find out how you can get involved too.