About Scope

Scope's services include creating housing, education and employment opportunities for people with cerebral palsy and related impairments.

Its Scope Response service gives information, advice and support to disabled people and their families. For information on cerebral palsy, disability issues and all of our services, Scope Response is your first point of contact.  You can call the response team on 0808 800 3333 9am-7pm weekdays, 10am-2pm on Saturdays.

If you wish, Scope can put you in touch with people who can help in your area. You can email response@scope.org.uk or visit their website www.scope.org.uk

Our history

The organisation now known as Scope was founded in 1952 by a group of parents - Ian Dawson-Shepherd, Eric Hodgson and Alex Moira - and a social worker, Jean Garwood. Together, they wanted to improve and expand services for people with cerebral palsy and founded the National Spastics Society, which merged with the British Council for the Welfare of Spastics in 1963 to become the Spastics Society.

By the time of the first AGM in 1953 there were 60 affiliated local groups, and the Garwood family had donated land to build the first residential unit, Coombe Farm in Croydon.

In 1955, the Society moved to Fitzroy Square, London.

During the early 1960s almost all of our current services began, including the horticultural training centre Thorngrove and Meldreth Manor School.

By 1970 the Society opened its first shop in borrowed premises and by 1976 there were over 100 fundraising shops.

In 1977 the emphasis was switched to disability prevention. Financially, things were at their lowest ebb in 1979. The deficit of £823,000 was the highest ever.

The situation began to improve in 1980 when a Blue Peter appeal raised over £1 million, and the International Year of Disabled People in 1981 raised awareness of disability as an issue at all levels.

The Society began initial research into the issue of its name in 1985.

1990 saw the launch of the Cerebral Palsy Helpline and the 200th Spastics Society shop opened in 1991.

In 1994 The Spastics Society took the historic decision to relaunch itself under the name of Scope. Relaunch offered the opportunity to review all of our activities and services and take innovative steps towards making the organisation more responsive to the needs of people with cerebral palsy.

In November 1996, Scope AGM voted in favour of an individual membership scheme to give a voice to the 25,000 people that Scope and its local groups are in contact with every year - the first national disability charity to do so.

In 1997, Scope opened its 300th shop.

In November 1999, Scope launched a new Aim and Vision