Transforming lives with The October Club

SIA’s position as the The October Club’s chosen charity for 2019 was officially announced this week at the House of Commons by the Club’s Chairman Henry Knapman.  SIA takes over from children’s charity Wellchild for whom The October Club raised £700,000 in 2018.

Each year 2,500 people sustain a spinal cord injury in the UK. Their lives, and that of their loved ones are changed forever, but just one in three will get the expert specialist care they need to rebuild their lives and live independently.  The 1,700 newly injured patients who do not receive specialist care are at risk of serious and life threatening health complications such as pressure sores, urinary tract infections, incontinence and respiratory issues.

The October Club’s support will enable SIA to help many more spinal cord injured people get the care and support they need to lead a fulfilled life. The project will support 1,000 spinal cord injured people per year and train a further 1,000 health and social care staff per year to meet the unique care needs of SCI people.

Nik Hartley OBE, CEO of SIA said:

“It is terrible to think that people in the UK, paralysed by an accident or medical condition, are then at risk of poor care to the point of risking their lives. This incredible opportunity given to us by The October Club will help us transform this situation for good. Scaling up our Nurse Specialist service will not just be life-saving but give us the chance to train a new generation of care-givers so that we can ultimately impact the whole community of 50,000 people with a spinal cord injury in this country.”

Henry Knapman, Chairman of The October Club said:

“The October Club has a very successful 31 year history of supporting smaller charities and their transformational projects. We have a transparent and rigorous application and selection process and are delighted to announce that, from many initial applications, our 2019 charity will be Spinal Injuries Association. We greatly look forward to working with them to transform the reach and impact of their pilot, supporting 1,000 spinal cord injured people directly per year, educating 1,000 healthcare professionals per year and building the evidence base that will drive lasting changes to policy and practice.”

The Launch of The October Club’s 2019 Charity Partnership at the House of Commons is sponsored by UBS.  Paul Corbett from UBS commented:

“UBS is extremely honoured to sponsor The October Club Charity Partnership Launch 2019.  The October Club consistently raises a significant amount of funding for charities, helping to transform the personal lives of a huge number of people. We are delighted The October club has selected Spinal Injuries Association as their charity this year and are thrilled to work with them to fulfil their aim of improving life after spinal cord injury.”