14 May Calls for the government to stop funding cuts as disability charities say they are under unprecedented pressure
Families of children with movement disorders are facing a devastating crisis as essential therapy providers, including the National Bobath Cerebral Palsy Centre, close their doors. Vital specialist services are disappearing due to chronic underfunding, leaving families scrambling for support.
Disability charities are under unprecedented strain. With little to no government funding, soaring operational costs, and surging demand, organisations like CPotential are fighting for survival. Competition for shrinking financial resources is fiercer than ever, putting crucial services at risk of collapse.
The crisis is further deepened by proposed government reforms to disability assessments and a £5 billion cut to benefits, announced by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Liz Kendall. These changes threaten to push families relying on specialist services even further to the margins.
In response, CPotential has launched the Ticking Clocks Appeal, a high-impact fundraising campaign to ensure that children with cerebral palsy, global developmental delay, and acquired brain injury can continue accessing life-changing therapies before critical developmental windows close.
Over the past five years, CPotential has expanded from supporting 36 children annually to helping over 400 children every year, a testament to both their impact and the growing need. However, demand continues to outstrip funding, leaving more children at risk.
Brett Parker says:
“We’re at a tipping point! Without urgent Government action, specialist centres like CPotential will vanish – and with us, life-changing support for thousands of children. We step in to support children with complex needs and ease the strain on the NHS, yet we’re left to survive on unpredictable fundraising and overstretched grants. It’s unsustainable. The Government must act now or face the consequences of failing the very children we all claim to protect.”
