A motorbike accident left me wheelchair-bound and I thought my life was over – now I help others with disabilities find their dream careers…
After he broke his spine in a motorbike accident and lost the use of his legs at the age of 31, Chobham local Grant Logan (50) believed his life was over. 19 years later, he’s climbed mountains, gone kayaking and snowboarding, and now helps others with disabilities access education and job opportunities.
When Grant came off his motorbike in 2003, he broke his spine and was in a coma for 2 days.
“I woke up surrounded by my family and friends to learn that I would never walk again. I spent the next 3 months in hospital and I remember coming home to my room and thinking ‘this is my prison now'”.
Grant later discovered Back Up Trust, a UK charity supporting people affected by spinal cord injuries. After getting into contact with them, he found he was still able to push himself.
“I went abseiling, canoeing, snowboarding and all these different things you’d never think are possible. When I first joined I met with a group at the Lake District and our team leader pointed to a mountain and said ‘we’re climbing that today’. Several hours later I was sitting at the top with the biggest grin on my face. I thought my life was over but it wasn’t. I was just seeing the world from 3 feet lower”.
Inspired by his experiences, Grant wanted to help other people affected by disability find opportunities and live an uninhibited life. What started as a news outlet centred around disability eventually evolved into a platform where people with disabilities could access education and career opportunities.
“I started off sending a team of disabled volunteers out to do some reporting, and ended up getting in contact with the NCTJ. They’re helping us provide qualifications in journalism so we set up the Academy for Disabled Journalists (ADJ). We currently have 40 students going through our online academy from Chobham to Kenya and we want to help them go on to earn a living from home. We aim to provide qualifications and training in journalism, bookkeeping, marketing, website development and more”.
Ability Today is an online platform providing news and information on products, services and organisations delivering knowledge and support to disabled people – covering topics like research, education, sport, travel, leisure, events and more. With their Academy for Disabled Journalists moving into its 3rd year and more academies coming online soon; Ability Today really is focusing on what they can do, not what they can’t!
One ADJ student, noted, “The ADJ is absolutely groundbreaking for disabled people who want to become journalists. There’s no other training out there remotely close in terms of quality of support and accessibility”.
Grant explains that he has just finished interviewing the next cohort of students for the Academy and wants to provide pathways to employment with the likes of the BBC, Sky News, Channel 4 News, Reach PLC and Newsquest.
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