Wheelchair Alliance launches All-Party Parliamentary Group

An organisation that champions the needs of wheelchair users across England has launched an All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Wheelchair Users to further strengthen their voices and get them heard at the highest levels of Government.

Following months of hard work, the Wheelchair Alliance’s first official APPG meeting at Portcullis House, Westminster, was supported by 20 Members of Parliament.

The meeting was chaired by Daniel Francis, Labour MP for Bexleyheath and Crayford and the Alliance’s president, Paralympian Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson with representatives from Whizz-Kidz, the leading UK charity for young wheelchair users, acting as secretariat.

The inaugural meeting concentrated on the formation of the group, which was followed by presentations on the Alliance and its reports, and an update on the organisation’s campaign to get the Government to update the Using Mobility Scooters And Powered Wheelchairs guidance and law, which could see users being prosecuted for using their power wheelchair on pavements.

“Launching the APPG was a landmark day for the Alliance,” said Nick Goldup, CEO at the Wheelchair Alliance.

“It was a real collaborative effort between wheelchair users, the Alliance, its board and President, MPs and partners to get it up and running and we are immensely proud of to have achieved it.

“The APPG gives us a direct route to Government and is a massive step towards strengthening the voices of wheelchair users and getting them heard by the people in power.”

More information about the Wheelchair Alliance can be found by visiting www.wheelchair-alliance.co.uk