The Minister of State for Disabled People visited a charity in Stanmore this week.
Mark Harper stopped by Aspire - a national charity supporting people who have been paralysed by Spinal Cord Injury - on Thursday (February 26).
He was invited to visit to hear about the charity's new initiatives including the InstructAbility programme, a programme in partnership with YMCAFit providing disabled people with free and accessible fitness industry training and qualifications.
Mr Harper met with Aspire CEO Brian Carlin and had a tour of the Aspire Leisure Centre, which was the first fully integrated Leisure Centre in Europe for both disabled and non-disabled people.
He also met with Lindsay Liggett, a recent graduate from the InstructAbility Programme who is currently in the third week of her 12-week placement at the Aspire Leisure Centre.
Mr Harper said: “We have made great strides in this area and there are now 3.1m disabled people in employment, an increase of 141,000 over the past year.
"However, there is still more that can be done to support disabled people in to work and Aspire’s InstructAbility programme is a great example of how tailored programmes can make a huge difference.”
Mr Carlin said: “I am delighted that Mark Harper MP was able to visit Aspire again so we could discuss with him the many ways in which Aspire has expanded its services over the last few years to continue to help people with spinal cord injuries, and in particular our experiences with our new Welfare Benefits Advice Service and Personal Independence Payments.”
