The New Back Up Wheelchair Skills App

2025 will mark twenty years since Back Up first developed and started delivering its vital wheelchair skills training sessions. To help mark the occasion and thanks to the support of the Motability Foundation, we have redeveloped and refreshed the Back Up wheelchair skills app, so you can practice using a wheelchair wherever you are.

The wheelchair skills app, over a series of short videos made by Back Up staff and volunteers, demonstrates the key skills needed to confidently and independently get around in your wheelchair.

Who is our wheelchair skills app for?

This  iPhone  and  Android  app is designed to help current inpatients and those recently discharged from hospital to learn essential skills on their return home. However, you can use the app to refresh and further hone your own skillset no matter when you sustained your spinal cord injury. The app features lessons for both power and manual chair users, with a different set of videos for each. Our wheelchair skills videos are relevant for people of all ages and injury levels and are presented by a diverse team of volunteers.

Download for iPhone Download for Android

Note: If you already have the original app on your Android phone, you will need to delete and download the new version. If you have the original app on your iOS device, you can simply download the updated version.

Share the skills you learned on our wheelchair skills app

Our app also features ‘achievements’, making it easy for you to see your progress. Once you’ve completed each lesson, you will receive a virtual Back Up Bug! Collect them all to receive the coveted gold bug.

We’d love to hear from you and see how you’ve improved! Upload what you’ve learned in a video to your social media and tag us @backuptrust and we’ll share it wide with our followers and supporters.

We want as many people as possible affected by spinal cord injury to benefit from this app. Please do share it with people who may need it – it could help someone transform their life.

The Back Up wheelchair skills app is available to download in both the  App Store  and in the  Google Play  store.