£250 Donation From Local Lawyers Starts New Relationship

The Manchester office of Irwin Mitchell has started a new relationship with national charity Newlife with a £250 donation to help a little boy with autism in north-west Manchester.

Newlife Charity is the UK’s largest charitable provider of essential equipment for disabled children. There are now around 1.1 million disabled and terminally ill children in the UK, thousands of whom rely on Newlife to get the equipment that they desperately need. 100% of all local fundraising and donations go directly to providing vital equipment to change the lives of children in the UK.

The Irwin Mitchell donation was used to help provide five-year-old David from Greater Manchester with a specialist car seat. David has no awareness of danger and his ability to escape from a standard child seat, even on a basic car journey put the whole family in a stressful situation.

David’s mum said: “David is unsafe in the car and puts everyone at risk as I’m so distracted by his behaviour. Trying to keep him safely in his seat used to lead to us not leaving the house unless absolutely necessary.”

Newlife has now provided the family with a specialist car seat, which has made a huge difference to David and his family, who can now get out and about together worry-free.

Expert Opinion

“We have a number of events and plans in the pipeline to help Newlife’s efforts locally, but we are delighted this initial donation has made such a big difference to David and his family. Our own I Am Able campaign puts the focus on what people with disabilities can achieve and this ties in well with the charity’s aim of changing lives, as they do so much more than supply equipment.” Nicola Ashton - Associate Solicitor Advocate

Over a million children live with disabilities or a terminal illness in the UK, with thousands in need of specialist equipment or support. Newlife step in when equipment has been refused by statutory services, or where supply delays would lead to unnecessary suffering. The charity’s National Nursing Helpline offers information and support to families and professionals caring for disabled and terminally ill children, including emergency equipment loans and grants.