Edinburgh Headway Group is the only specialised organisation for adults with Acquired Brain Injury in Edinburgh.

Currently based at Astley Ainslie Hospital, it provides high-quality person-centred rehabilitation services which support both adults with brain injuries and their families and carers.

Headway's creative writing group encourages members to tell their own stories and express themselves creatively, and enables individuals to work on verbal communication, writing skills and participate in group discussions. 

The group has the added benefit of social interaction which the participants of the group look forward to every week.

It is sadly common for people who have had a brain injury to experience depression, isolation and withdrawal, and enjoyable recreational activities can play a big role in lifting moods and supporting reintegration into the community. Regaining confidence to engage socially, redeveloping skills such as writing or finding enjoyable hobbies are crucial to those with brain injury living well and looking forward to the future.

To find out more about Edinburgh Headway Group, visit www.edinburghheadway.org.uk.

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In 2017, we sent poet Patricia Heaney (pictured) to visit Headway during their writing class as part of our 'My Time' poetry project.

You can read the poem she wrote about the group here.

Here's what Patricia had to say about her visit:

"I loved being at Headway and was so impressed by the warmth, camaraderie and input of all involved that I stayed on and took part in their music quiz which was great fun. The poetry class which I attended was also great fun with some mischief injected by one of the volunteers which seemed to spark quite a lot of creativity! It was clear that these meetings meant a great deal to all involved and I was privileged to be among them."