Charity Profile

Disabled Living is a registered charity that helps people with disabilities to enjoy greater independence. Founded in 1897 as the Cripples’ Help Society it is Manchester ’s second oldest charity. Our aim is to maintain our position as the region’s leading provider of disability equipment advice and services to help Disabled People live independent lives. In the year ending 31 March 2006 we held events and dealt with enquiries which led to the provision of 161,577 services to the community that are currently provided on a free of charge basis.

We provide services through the following main routes:-

The Disabled Living Centre is one of the largest of the UK network of Disabled Living Centres and is a member of Assist UK (formerly Disabled Living Centres Council), offering services for disabled and older people, their families, carers, and health/social care professionals. The accessible building houses the largest permanent UK display of equipment for easier and independent living where people can see and try products. Our qualified and experienced staff, which includes specialists in pressure care, give independent advice and information to visitors or users of our telephone help-lines. A unique service is the regular provision of children’s seating clinics.

Training Our highly experienced multi-professional team brings together a wide range of expertise to provide a full training programme for professionals and informal carers. Topics address most aspects of disability. We specialise in Moving & Handling; Equipment - Choosing and Using and Safety Issues; Continence - Bladder and Bowel Management; Disability Awareness, Disability and Employment.

PromoCon is a comprehensive resource offering a national confidential helpline which provides unbiased information and advice in relation to continence products and services to the general public, healthcare and social care professionals and the commercial sector. PromoCon offers a mail order service for disposable and reusable products and the Disabled Living Centre is home to a permanent display of 2,500 continence products.

The Sensurround room provides a comfortable and safe multi sensory environment in which individuals' primary senses are stimulated by a library of visual, audio and tactile experiences. The environment offers a leisure, pleasure and therapeutic setting, to which can be added, if required, complementary therapies such as Aromatherapy , Reiki or Reflexology.

In addition we run a number of Employment related services:-

Ways 2 Work is a new initiative preparing disabled people for employment with specialist study and equipment days, disability awareness training and training courses for people with a disability wishing to start or return to work.

Open for Business is a service aimed at smaller businesses and organisations to help them make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to meet Disability Discrimination Act requirements.

Community Activity – Disabled Living also reaches the community it serves via outreach work and information, provided to a range of organisations through presentations, information days and exhibitions. Our main community activity is Kidz Up North, the only FREE UK exhibition totally dedicated to disabled children. Held annually at the Reebok Stadium, Bolton and attracting 3,500 plus visitors, both public and professional, who have the opportunity to meet specialist suppliers, attend seminars and discussions and become involved in play and leisure activities.

Income:

We are a self funding charity with less than one per cent of our income coming from statutory sources. To raise all other income we are totally dependent upon support from grant making Trusts, companies, individuals, community groups, legacies and the sale of services.

Disabled Living currently delivers approximately 150,000 free services each year to the community. Demand for these much needed and valuable services continues to grow and if we are to sustain and develop them to help disabled people enjoy greater independence then we have to raise more money. To do this we must look to the community as a whole for support.

For further information on how you or your company can help us please contact John or Peter in the Business Development Department on telephone number 0161 214 4591 or email peter.dean@disabledliving.co.uk.

Should you wish to help us by making an online donation now please click Donation.