From social worker to designer

from Kidz to Adults Magazine Issue 14

What's new on the toileting front in Scotland?

CARON MCLUCKIE’S CAREER AS A SOCIAL WORKER WAS FULFILLING AND REWARDING. HOWEVER, HER ENTREPRENEURIAL FLAIR BEGAN BUBBLING WHEN HER FASHION CONSCIOUS SON EMILE SOUGHT A SOLUTION TO A COMMON PROBLEM. SHE TELLS KIDZ TO ADULTZ MAGAZINE ABOUT THE JOURNEY OF BEALIES ADAPTIVEWEAR

In January 2016, our lives changed forever. While out with my son Emile one Saturday afternoon he suffered a spinal cord stroke. Just like that, with no warning. The spinal stroke left him paralysed from the chest down. I was amazed at how well Emile coped with this traumatic event; his resilience was astounding. Emile now has no bladder or bowel function, and we must selfcatheterise to empty his bladder. Once we got into our daily routine it soon became clear that clothes didn’t fit properly whilst he was sat in

his wheelchair. More importantly, the comfortable joggers that Emile likes to wear didn’t provide easy access to catheterise.

THE IDEA

I undertook research and spoke to a range of people including wheelchair users, carers, physiotherapists, and occupational therapists to find out the issues they faced when getting dressed or supporting someone to dress. With this research, and my own experience with Emile, I approached the Fashion Institute at Manchester Metropolitan University. They had been researching, along with the Stroke Association, the difficulties that stroke survivors face when trying to find suitable clothes when returning to work. Students Rebecca and Melissa Everett were excited by my idea of fly frontopening joggers, and they wanted to make a prototype.

THE PRODUCT: ADAPTIVE JOGGERS

The idea resulted in bespoke joggers with a unique opening to enable comfortable dressing and catheterising. They are higher at the back to avoid sagging whilst sitting and transferring to ensure everything is covered. I have been working with a small focus group of people, who range from having a spinal cord injury in adulthood to people with cerebral palsy. We identified that there is a difference in muscle mass in the legs for people who cannot bear weight or have been spinal injured for a long time, and as a result have lost muscle mass over the years. Therefore, we are redesigning the joggers to have a slim fit leg, which is the current fashion, and we will also have a regular fit for people with more muscle mass on their legs, to ensure a better fit for different disabilities and all shapes and sizes. A small run of the joggers is due be made and launched in September 2021.

I am delighted to have two brand ambassadors: Shaun White (on the left in the image) and Paralympic athlete James Freeman (second from left in the image). James represented team GB in the 100m track in the Paralympics in Tokyo this year.

TESTIMONIALS

“Having been a paraplegic for over 35 years, I am familiar with the search for comfortable clothing that look and feel great but are practical for the kind of user that sits down all day. The Bealies Joggers are the holy grail of leisure wear for wheelchair users, particularly if you self-catheterise.” Customer

“With the offset zip it is possible to catheterise yourself easily, without fuss. With that is the quality of materials and construction of these pants. The material used is soft and durable, the zip is large and easy to grip, and the seat is manufactured with a higher back to keep you covered. There is a pocket on the front/side to keep your mobile phone where you need it.” Customer

“The Bealies Joggers have been well thought out, well designed and well manufactured and you should buy yourself some today.” Phil, Cheshire

“I wore them on Tuesday for teaching PE. They were good as they did not fall like other pants. Plus, the zip bit at the side helped when catheterising. The leg part fitted well, especially when transferring. Plus, I was able to pull them up while in the chair. Overall, I loved them. If I were to buy a pair, I would get the next size down.” Andrew, Lancs

ABOUT ME

I am a 55-year-old mother of three children: Theo, 26, Emile, 19, and Esther,17. We live in Stockport, Cheshire. After taking early retirement from my career as a mental health social worker I felt ready for a new challenge. I believe in the Bealies product and feel that there is a gap in the market for casual wear for wheelchair users which is fashionable as well as functionable. Esther’s nickname for Emile is Bealie so I decided to name the business Bealies Adaptivewear. I am passionate about supporting manufacturing in the UK. My mother was a home machinist when the clothing manufacturing industry in the UK was strong, so I will be producing the joggers in England and have identified a manufacturer in the Midlands.

SHOW ME THE MONEY!

I have been crowdfunding to raise money to fund the first run of the

joggers. I am producing a small run of the adaptive joggers to identify any teething problems, fine tune the patterns and materials before producing the joggers on a larger scale. The crowdfunder campaign is still live and open to pledges. https:// www.crowdfunder.co.uk/bealiesjoggers

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ADAPTIVE CLOTHING?

• In the UK there are approximately 1.2 million wheelchair users and 13.9 million disabled people. (Family resources survey 2016/17) • There has been a steady rise in people searching online for adaptive clothing. (Global fashion search Lyst 2019) • The only mainstream designer who has an adaptive range at present is Tommy Hilfiger.

However, being an expensive designer brand, these items are far from accessible to everyone. • The disabled market is worth £249bn. Known as the ‘purple pound’, people with disabilities remain the largest untapped consumer market.

The UK high street does not yet reflect this shift. Unlike the US, where a handful of mainstream stores have adaptive lines, UK retailers remain slow to enter the market. Designers must address the unmet demand for disabilityfriendly workwear and occasion wear as identified in the project with Manchester Metropolitan University. Marks and Spencer are selling an easy dressing range for children in stores and online and as mentioned above, Tommy Hilfiger has had some success with its inclusive, yet expensive, range of clothes each season. There is a clear market for Bealies Adaptivewear, and the business has the exciting potential to grow.

REFERENCES

https://www.theguardian.com/ fashion/2019/dec/30/why-2019was-a-landmark-year-for-disabledfashion.

THE FUTURE FOR BEALIES ADAPTIVEWEAR

• I would like to continue to add to the collection using the template of the fly front opening to use different materials, adaptive shorts, longline T-shirts and unisex pieces to be more inclusive for all disabled people.

The range will be modelled on mainstream fashion and will be updated seasonally. • I want to continue to manufacture the products in the UK and would like to set up as a social enterprise and open a micro-factory where we can support adults with learning and physical disabilities to learn a trade, and make the joggers and other products here in the UK.