Headway is the UK equivalent of the Brain Injury Association of America (BIAUSA), and like BIAUSA they are a clearinghouse for information about brain injury, advocacy and support.  Headway was established similar to the way many of the state brain injury associations in the U.S. and and BIAUSA were started - by family members, when in 1979, according to the history from their website:

Headway provides information and support to brain injury survivors family and caregivers and not just from their website or national office, but also th rough their national toll-free helpline.

Headway is unique in that it operates over 100 regional branches and groups throughout the UK including Scotland and Northern Ireland.  These branches function much like a non-profit organization would in the states.  The branches and groups are staffed by paid employees and volunteers.

The individual branches are similar to "drop-in centers" or " clubhouse programs" that you would find in the U.S., and they vary in operation and the kinds of services they provide, however, you will find a wide range of services, including rehabilitation programs, caregiver support, social re-integration, community outreach and respite care.  A part of their objectives are "to assist people with brain injuries to return to community living, including access to appropriate accommodation, social outlets, and productive activity."  Headway has a very impressive network of branches - most have their own websites and you can visit them from the main Headway site: Local Groups.

You can find information about legislation and regulations that affect individuals with brain injury in the UK, it is interesting to compare that to current and proposed legislation in the states (or other countries).

The Headway website provides information to brain injury professionals including the latest research.  Headway also offers training for professionals as well as conferences.

Not unlike the U.S. which has had it's brain injury awareness month every March, Headway supports Action for Brain Injury Week, where they focus on a different issue each year.

Visitors can also learn about volunteering as well as make donations from the Headway website and take a moment and learn about their Aims and Objectives.

There are also publication downloads including a quarterly newsletter available from the Headway site.  Visit them for more insight on brain injury in the UK.

The Brain Injury Social Work Group
www.biswg.co.uk

The Brain Injury Social Work Group (BISWG) is a group for social work professionals and affiliates aiming to raise the standards of social work practice and other relevant specialist services in supporting people with a brain injury, their families and carers.  This is a very unique group - we know of no counterpart group in the U.S.  The Brain Injury Social Work Group is affiliated with the British Association of Social Workers (BASW).

The BISWG purpose is "to bring together social workers and other professionals interested in acquired brain injury to enable them to share knowledge and skills."  The BISWG does this through training, education, conferences, consultations. The efforts of the BISWG provides support and training for colleagues, and works to heighten awareness in different milieus' (such as: hospitals, rehabilitation programs, community-based agencies, supported housing programs, etc.) of the needs and potential of individuals with brain injury.  

The website contains information about brain injury and neurological conditions, a newsletter, a listing of educational events.  There is social work specific information and a section for job listings for brain injury programs in the UK that are seeking social workers.

While much of the content of the BISWG website is aimed at social workers working with clients with brain injury; it is beneficial for anyone - survivors, family, clinical and support staff and social workers from the U.S. and other countries to see how people from a clinical field have organized themselves and encourage best practices.  

As you will see in the links listed below there is also a similar group for UK psychiatrists and case managers.  The BISWG has even expanded with the establishment of an Australian counterpart group.  



All About ABI Acquired Brain Injury
www.aboutbraininjury.org.uk



All About ABI Acquired Brain Injury is a part of the Brain & Spine Foundation in the UK, and is a graphic-intensive site for children and young people who have had a brain injury as well as for siblings and friends to learn more about acquired brain injury.

Basic questions that youths might ask are answered in a simple, to-the-point way on the All About ABI Acquired Brain Injury site.  The site uses young people depicted as cartoon characters (much like ThinkFirst in the U.S. and Canada does). There are two characters with ABI: "Amy" who has encephalitis, and "Mike" who has an ABI from a crash into a tree while riding a BMX.  There are three other characters: "Josh" who is Amy's little Brother and Maya who is Amy's friend.  There is one adult character: "Nurse Anna" who cared for Amy in the hospital.  When you click on a character there are questions about brain injury that appear in the left column and you can click them on to find out answers.  This all remains very simple and clear and presents a realistic scenario for young visitors.  There is a lot of room for parents and clinicians who use this site with young people to expand on the answers presented.

The questions the All About ABI Acquired Brain Injury website asks and answers includes:  What is ABI?, What Happened to You In the Hospital?  Being a Teenager With ABI, and others.  Each question will open to a new page with information as well as sub-questions.  For instance under the question  What Happened to You In the Hospital? are other questions a young person with an ABI can click on like: Having An Operation, and Who's Who In the Hospital? There is also a section about "bullying" which has been an issue among young people in the UK especially towards brain injury survivors.  Having clear, easy to understand answers makes All About ABI Acquired Brain Injury a unique and useful site.

The site also has a brain injury dictionary also with clear, basic definitions of common terms.  There is a Help section which lists all of the pages in the site as regular HTML links.  While some of the content on All About ABI Acquired Brain Injury is specific to the UK it is nonetheless valuable for young people anywhere.  Because of how the All About ABI Acquired Brain Injury website is constructed we couldn't help but think that some young ABI survivors may require assistance navigating the site but that shouldn't deter anyone from its use.  All About ABI Acquired Brain Injury is another unique, and helpful web resource from the UK.


Other UK Websites

Below is a listing of some of the more interesting UK websites and organizations related to brain injury.  This is not a comprehensive list, however, it is a good starting point to learn more about ABI in the UK.

The Brain Injury Rehabilitation Trust is a division of he Disabilities Trust which is a charity or non-profit organization that provides various support and rehabilitation services at the community level.  Their supported housing programs are similar to a supported independent living-community reentry residential program that you would find in the states.

British Association of Brain Injury Case Managers BABICM is a professional association which was established in 1996 to promote the development of case management in the field of acquired brain injury.  This is also a unique UK organization with no counterpart in the U.S.

Scottish Acquired Brain Injury Network (MCN) is is a Managed Clinical network (MCN) funded by the National Health Service (NHS).  Rehabilitation is patient or family centered and involved joint working with social work, educational, vocational and voluntary agencies as well as health professionals.

The Child Brain Injury Trust (CBIT) is a UK-wide charity offering support, information and training on childhood acquired brain injury.  The CBIT provides child and family support, support groups, training, awareness and conferences.

United Kingdom Acquired Brain Injury Forum (UKABIF) a charity which aims to promote understanding of all aspects of Acquired Brain Injury and to provide expert input to policy makers, service providers and general public.

The Stroke Association is a charity solely concerned with combating stroke in people of all ages. It funds research into prevention, treatment and better methods of rehabilitation, and helps stroke patients and their families directly through its rehabilitation and support services.

Momentum Scotland provides transitional services, vocational services and job training and supported living services.

Brain & Spine Foundation provides information and support for adults and children with neurological conditions.

Encephalitis Society has a well-developed website that contains information about the society as well as encephalitis.  There are a lot of downloads on this site including fact sheets, leaflets, their newsletter, articles and other information including a sizable section on research.  You can also read personal stories from survivors as well as poems by survivors'.

National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is an National Heath Service (NHS) webpage containing clinical guidelines about brain injury.

ricability Mobility Reports - Driving After a Brain Injury is a website of the Research Institute for Consumer Affairs (RICA) and provides information for the disability community and seniors.

The Neurosupport Centre is not only a website but a brick and mortar information center in Liverpool UK that provides information on neurological conditions, education and training and vocational supports.  They also maintain a brick and mortar library at the center and you can access their library catalog online (we had problems using Internet Explorer but had no issues when using Firefox).

BASIC Brain and Spinal Injury Centre has been providing counseling, information and support services for patients and their families following a brain or spinal injury for over twelve years. Although a relatively small charity BASIC supports patients in a number of ways nationally, regionally and locally.  BASIC was started by a family member of an ABI survivor.

UK Psychiatrists Brain Injury Group was established  in 1997 and meets twice yearly at the Royal College of Psychiatrists in the UK. This group is made up of Members and Fellows from the Royal College of Psychiatrists who have a specific interest in brain injury. The group objective is to share information about the assessment, diagnosis and management of people with brain injury and to develop appropriate services for people with the mental health consequences of brain injury.

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