‘I made crutches with style’
Clare Braddell, 60, runs Coolcrutches and lives in Gloucestershire with her husband, Michael.
It was the phone call that changed Clare’s life. Her daughter Amelia, then 19, had been helicoptered to hospital with a possible broken leg.
Amelia was renting a holiday home in Glasgow with friends in October 2008 when they decided to ride quad bikes. But she ended up upside down in a river.
When Clare arrived at the hospital with her husband Michael, 67, they were told it was actually her back that was broken. ‘The surgeon said she’d walk again,’ said Clare. ‘But she’d always need aid.’
Amelia then spent six months in hospital, having two operations. ‘After months of rehab, she could walk but only with crutches, which she’d probably need for life,’ says Clare. ‘She returned to university and achieved a
2:1, but it was difficult. Her friends had all graduated and she was lonely. I wished there was something more I could do. Then, one day, watching her click along on her crutches, I thought there must be a more stylish alternative she wouldn’t feel so embarrassed using.’
Clare found a company that made slim, rubbertipped crutches, which were easier to use, quieter and not just grey. She ordered a few pairs and personalised them.
Seeing the difference they made to Amelia’s
confidence, Clare started Coolcrutches in 2010.
‘I’ve designed crutches with leopard print, football logos and even pictures of pets,’ she says. ‘It’s great to know I’ve helped people. And, while I can’t undo Amelia’s disability, I’ve helped bring back her smile.’
‘I thought there must be a more stylish alternative’