Freedom to S'up

Monday April 4 2016

Jackie Macadam hears how a revolutionary invention is transforming mealtimes for some people with disabilities, thanks to the work of a Church of Scotland elder in Edinburgh.

A young Scottish inventor is causing a bit of a ‘stir’ in the disabled community with his creation of an adapted spoon.

Grant Douglas, an elder and son of the Rev Alex Douglas, former minister at Edinburgh: Blackhall St Columba’s, has cerebral palsy and as many people with his condition do, has mobility problems and a tremor that makes it difficult to hold small items and use them with precision.

A particular issue for him is feeding himself.

“It’s incredibly frustrating. I needed a deeper spoon with a ‘lid’ that would allow me to hold food on it more easily and a handle with a raised section to let me slip my fingers underneath the handle to pick it up.”

As he grew older, the idea of a spoon began to take shape and he found his involvement with the Church helpful in developing the idea.

“One Christmas Fayre at the church I got to chatting with some folk there and I mentioned how I was trying to invent a spoon so that I could at least have my breakfast in the morning!” A good friend overheard me talking and they knew the director of a design firm in Glasgow and they passed me on to them.

“They took the idea on as a project and about 18 months of trials and tests of different shapes followed until the shape was just right.

“It has a curved handle so I can fit a finger under it and lift it (most cutlery is nearly flat to the table) and the bowl is deep but with a high upper surface that keeps the food from falling out.

“Three days before Christmas in 2014 I took delivery of my ‘S’up Spoon’ and I ate my whole Christmas meal without spilling anything for the first time in my life.

“For most people it might seem silly celebrating being able to eat a bowl of soup but if you’re disabled, it’s really the little things that make a big difference to how you feel about yourself.

“I even take extra portions now!”

Producing the spoon has involved overcoming obstacles.

“Getting the spoon into production needed money and at first I tried crowdfunding. The designers and I reckoned we’d need about £33,000 and in a month I raised £16,000 – largely thanks to the generosity of members of the congregation.

“Unfortunately, if you don’t raise your full amount in the allotted time, you don’t get anything, so that was a bust.

“However, the members of the congregation who had offered their money approached me and said they would still be happy to make the donation if I could do it another way.”

After a meeting with the designers, it was agreed to move ahead with the funds already pledged.

“I now have a website selling the spoon and it’s being bought by people all over the world. We’ve shipped to every continent.

“It costs £15 and so far, 500 have been sold. It’s not just people like me with cerebral palsy who are finding it useful. People with Parkinson’s Disease are buying it and anyone with a tremor in their hands is able to use it.

“It’s my spoon, but it wouldn’t have been possible without the help and the faith in me from the people of my congregation. I can’t thank them enough.”

Find out more about the S’up spoon at http://www.sup-products.com