Care rules risk excluding disabled leaders from international industry roles
A disabled charity leader from Oxfordshire risks missing an international conference where she is due to deliver a keynote speech, after the NHS said it cannot support her care outside the UK.
Lucy Robinson, President of the European Spinal Cord Injury Federation, has been invited to speak at the European Spinal Psychologists Association conference in Murnau, Germany, on 23-24 April 2026.
The conference forms part of her professional responsibilities representing disabled people at an international level. Without timely approval, she risks missing the event, as well as future international opportunities. She is also required to attend the European Spinal Cord Injury Federation Conference in Italy this May.
Because Lucy had her Personal Health Budget removed in July 2025, the risk assessment for travelling needs to be submitted by the care company chosen by the ICB. Despite her care company notifying the ICB in December 2025 of the need for Lucy to travel to both Germany and Italy, Lucy then faced months of delays before being told on 10 April that the arrangements would not be approved.
In its decision letter, the ICB stated that NHS funding responsibilities “cease at the UK border” and that care delivered overseas cannot be authorised under its current policy.
Under NHS Continuing Healthcare, the NHS is responsible for meeting an individual’s assessed needs. ICBs are not required to cover the additional costs of providing that care overseas. However, Lucy is not requesting any additional NHS funding for the trip, as all associated costs will be covered by herself and the conference organisers.
Lucy Robinson said: “This isn’t a holiday – it’s my work. I’ve been invited to speak internationally about disability and lived experience, yet I’ve been told I can’t take the usual care I receive outside the UK.
“I’m not asking the NHS to fund my trip. I simply need to be able to travel with the support I already receive. My freedoms are restricted and I am caught in a system that penalises me for wanting to work.”
The delay has been compounded by late requests for additional information. While the ICB were notified of the trip in December, further questions were not raised until April, just weeks before the planned trip.
Jodee Mayer, Lucy’s solicitor and Pro Bono Manager at Stewarts, said: “Lucy is not asking for additional NHS funding, yet the process has still prevented her from making basic arrangements to carry out her role as the President of ESCIF.”
The ICB told Lucy that they needed to be told about any trip abroad at least six months in advance, which places significant restrictions on her independence as a working professional. However, Lucy was not told this until after submitting her request in December, and the application was later refused on the basis that care cannot be supported outside the UK.
Despite the refusal, Lucy is now planning to attend the conference with her mother acting as her primary carer, alongside support she is arranging herself locally in Germany – meaning her family must step in to provide support that would otherwise be part of her care.
Dr Jane Duff, Consultant Clinical Psychologist at the National Spinal Injuries Unit and Chair of the European Spinal Psychology Association, stated: “Lucy was invited as the president of ESCIF an umbrella organisation representing people with SCI across Europe. It is incredibly important that the voices of people with lived experience are included in knowledge sharing and the improvement of clinical services across Europe and globally.
“Peer support is internationally recognised as an essential intervention in the rehabilitation of people with spinal cord injury, as set out by the World Health Organization. It is therefore a great shame that Lucy is facing significant barriers to continuing this important work.”
Carol Barraclough from the Spinal Injuries Association added: “Lucy is representing the UK on an international stage and advocating for disabled people across Europe.
Situations like this risk excluding disabled people from opportunities others take for granted, particularly when they are simply trying to do their job.”
