2026 Free

Pain Concern's Impact 2025-2026

Pain Concern supports people living with chronic pain and health professionals through information, education and peer support. In 2025, the helpline supported 200 people per month; the Airing Pain podcast reached 1,100 listeners per month across 150 episodes (earning CPD credits from the Faculty of Pain Medicine); Pain Matters magazine had 1,600 active HealthUnlocked community members and 280 new posts monthly; 42 pain education sessions were delivered across 5 Scottish health boards; and 17,000 people visited the website monthly. The charity celebrated 30 years of publishing and podcasting.

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About

Airing Pain podcast (150 episodes, CPD-credited); Pain Matters magazine (print and digital with audio option); HealthUnlocked online peer community; helpline (staffed by people with lived experience); 2-hour pain education sessions (NHS partnership, 5 Scottish health boards); mindfulness sessions (online taster and full courses); Self-Management Navigator Tool (NICE-recognised, interactive appointment prep tool); pain education videos for waiting areas; website and resources Custom geography from upload: Scotland / UK-wide

Key Metrics

Key Metric 1 200 people helped per month via helpline (phone and email); 1,100 podcast listeners per month; 1,600 active HealthUnlocked community members with 280 new posts monthly
Key Metric 2 42 pain education sessions delivered across 5 Scottish health boards; 17,000 website visits monthly; 900 support resources downloaded monthly
Key Metric 3 10,500 social media followers; 2,000 monthly newsletter recipients; Airing Pain podcast at 150 episodes — awarded Honorary BPS Membership to producer; Navigator Tool recognised by NICE

Key Outcomes

  • Pain education participant quote: 'I feel so much less isolated — I've come away with realistic action points that might make my life a little easier'; Navigator Tool used in pain clinics nationally; CPD credits awarded by Faculty of Pain Medicine for podcast
  • Hosted Jennie Minto MSP (Minister for Public Health, Scotland) alongside chronic pain stakeholders — commitment to prioritise chronic pain in government policy; contributed to Scottish Government Chronic Pain Prescribing Guideline and SIGN; helped establish Scottish Patient and Public Involvement in Pain Research (PPIE) event
  • 30th anniversary of publishing and podcasting; Heather Wallace won 2024 Inspiring Volunteer Award; Marjorie Fisher and Urszula Sadecka honoured at Volunteer Edinburgh 2025 Inspiring Awards; supporting IASP 2026 Neuropathic Pain campaign; pain education video series for health professionals created

Geography

Other

Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
Total income £18,180,000 and total expenditure £18,560,000 (year ended 31 December 2024, charity no. 1084958 England/Wales and SC039654 Scotland); in 2024 spent £3.8m on...
Key Metric 2
700+ members supported through in-person visits and support calls in 2025; 697 support grants allocated in 2025 for essential items including specialist clothing, cooling...
Key Metric 3
Largest global investment in EB research to date: multi-million-pound drug repurposing trial provisionally agreed with LifeArc partner at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation...
£34,000 raised in 2025 winter appeal supporting families like Darcie's with specialist items, emotional support and research; 697 support grants delivered in 2025; first Members Connect event in Northern Ireland; EB Priorities Setting Partnership study completed providing global research roadmap
Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
22,507 households helped through RBL casework and specialist support services across 66 countries
Key Metric 2
22,600 grants given to those in need, totalling £11.8 million
Key Metric 3
733 beneficiaries represented at tribunals, resulting in £24.5 million in War Pensions awards
1,548 new families living with dementia supported by RBL Admiral Nurses service
Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
3,600 blind veterans received support across the UK; 447 new blind veterans started receiving support in 2024/25
Key Metric 2
1,598 referrals to rehabilitation services completed; 313 veterans received assistive technology training
Key Metric 3
997 volunteers donated 26,824 hours of support; befriending service awarded Quality in Befriending Excellence — one of only 11 organisations in the UK to...
1,831 National Creative Wellbeing Project packs issued to help veterans reconnect with creativity and independence
Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
349,000+ people completed the Know Your Risk tool to assess their risk of type 2 diabetes in 2024
Key Metric 2
£4 million invested in 17 new research projects; total active grants portfolio worth over £45 million
Key Metric 3
32% of people completing NHS England's Path to Remission programme — which Diabetes UK campaigned for — put their type 2 diabetes into remission
Type 1 Diabetes Grand Challenge invested over £23 million in 19 projects across 161 experts from 47 institutions in 8 countries since 2022