Welcome

Welcome to the Second Chance Headway website. We hope your visit will give you a better understanding of Second Chance Headway and how we operate.

Second Chance Headway is a Company limited by Guarantee and our new name of Second Chance Headway Centre reflects the links with Headway - the brain injury association. We are a progressive support group with a day centre situated in Wakefield city centre at Almshouse Lane, providing support and guidance to survivors of head injury and their families.

We support those who have sustained severe brain damage in road traffic accidents, falls at home or work, sporting accidents, assaults, etc.

We provide advice, information, support and a specialist Day Centre.

Second Chance Headway now receives social services funding for several members but continues to rely on the generosity of public donations for the “extras” and, although employing seven staff, depends on a committed team of team of volunteers to provide brain injured people and their families with such a valuable resource.

Second Chance Headway Day Centre is open five days a week, helping brain injured people to learn vital every-day skills, which they have lost and to cope with the problems arising from their condition:

• Communication Skills - reading, writing, talking (conversation)
  
• Memory Skills - places, time, names, objects
  
• Interests/Hobbies - woodwork, crafts, computers, board games, pool, etc.
  
• Increase concentration
  
• Mobility - assistance with physiotherapy

Mission Statement

Second Chance Headway Centre provides a day service for adults with a traumatic brain injury.
We believe in the right of everyone to an acceptable quality of life and that disability should not be a barrier to obtaining the stills, knowledge and understanding required to achieve a better quality of life.

Did you know?

• Each year, around 1.4 million people attend hospital Accident and Emergency departments in the UK following head injury
• Approximately half of deaths in people under 40 are due to head injury
• Head injury accounts for about 30 per cent of traumatic deaths and a higher proportion of long-term disabilities
• Men are two or three times more likely to have a brain injury than women. This increases to five times more likely in the 15-29 age range
• The major causes of head injury are road traffic collisions, falls and accidents at home or at work
• The majority of traumatic head injuries (80%) are classified as ‘mild' with most people seen in Accident and Emergency and discharged home. Although ‘mild', people often suffer from ongoing debilitating symptoms such as headaches, irritability, fatigue, poor concentration and memory problems. Such symptoms may be prolonged and impact on family relationships and employment. Approximately 10% of head injuries are ‘moderate', require a brain scan and admission to hospital. These people are at high risk of ongoing symptoms. The other 10% are those with ‘severe' head injury who are in a coma and require specialist treatment in intensive care