Sophie: Hi, I’m Sophie-Marie Odum, Lifestyle Magazine’s Editor.
Sam: And I’m Samantha Renke, broadcaster and disability rights campaigner. And a huge welcome to The Motability Lifestyle Pod. In this podcast, we invite our friends from the disability community into the studio for a conversation about how we can all live our best life, particularly when navigating a disabling world.
Sophie: Before we get started on this next episode, just a reminder that if you’re listening to us in your car, you can also watch the full episode on YouTube, complete with captions and British Sign Language.
Also, make sure to click Subscribe or Follow wherever you’re listening, so you’re the first to know when each new episode lands.
In today’s episode, we’re joined by Isaac Harvey MBE. Isaac is a disability advocate, mentor, and influential presence on LinkedIn, President of the skating group Wheels And Wheelchairs filmmaker and co-founder of the videography company Seated Perspectives. And! He’s done a bit of modelling too, the list just goes on.
Sam: I’m feeling a bit intimidated right now.
Sophie: It’s a long list, isn’t it?
Sam: It is a long list! We haven’t got all day, Isaac. Bloomin’ heck.
Sophie: Sam! Hi!
Sam: Hello!
Sophie: How are you?
Sam: I’m very well. I’m feeling the summer vibes at the moment. Are you appreciating-
Sophie: I love.
Sam: The nautical- Would you call it nautical vibe? I went very frilly, I mean, it is technically raining cats and dogs outside, but, you know- You know, just, illusion. It’s creating that illusion.
It’s sunny somewhere.
Sophie: It’s sunny somewhere, exactly.
Sam: Maybe not where we are.
Sophie: What have you been up to?
Sam: Gosh, what have I been up to? So I know that, I’ve spoken to you about finally getting a date in the diary for an operation, so not necessarily a reason to be happy on the surface, but I think a lot of the listeners and viewers can absolutely resonate with the fact that when you have been on a waiting list and when you’ve been trying to organise the right consultant, the right aftercare, that can be quite, you know, long-winded to say the least, when you finally get that letter to go, “You’ve got a date!” You know, it’s a mixed bag of trepidation but also I now- I feel like the end is nigh and I now feel like I can relax, take time to heal and then, you know, kind of compete with Isaac and his- And his plethora of, you know, accomplishments. So, yeah, a little bit of a bittersweet moment for me but I am looking forward to- I’m looking forward to eating a lot of ice cream, to be quite honest with you.
Sophie: Catching up on a few on a few series?
Sam: Yeah. Catching up some- Oh, our podcast obviously!
Sophie: Obv!
Sam: Because we, you know, we love listening to our own voices. Yeah. Just taking that downtime and just chilling. And I think listening to my body, which sometimes can be quite difficult, particularly when you’re constantly on the move or, you know you’re constantly working or, you know, doing whatever you’re doing, living life. So yeah, it’s nature’s way of going, “Slow down!”
Sophie: Yes, exactly. Well, wishing you well Sam.
Sam: Thank you so much.
Sophie: Hope all goes well!
Sam: Thank you.
Sophie: But yeah, it’s been a busy time on Lifestyle. We’ve got the new issue out if you can see it on- Strategically positioned. [Latest Lifestyle magazine cover is in shot]
Sam: It’s like- It’s like we thought about this, you know?
Sophie: So, yes, if you haven’t read the latest issue, it’s out now. Also just been busy. I had a lunch with Edward Enninful. The Editor-In-Chief of Vogue.
Sam: I have been stalking you and Miss Naomi Campbell as well.
Sophie: Yes. Yeah.
Sam: I can’t believe- I was like, “What! Wait. Hang on! Wait a minute, where was my invitation?
What is our Soph doing next to Miss Campbell?”
Sophie: Well, you know, we’re besties now. She doesn’t know it yet, but-
Sam: Oh, yeah. Do you knock outside her door going, “Hiya. Do you remember me? Sophie!”
Sophie: But yeah, we had a lunch with Edward.. So-Yeah, that was really good. It was more of him just talking about his rise to becoming Editor-In-Chief of Vogue. And just how he’s just broken down so many barriers when it comes to diversity and inclusion because when you compare Vogue to what it is now to what it was before, it’s so much more accessible. There’s so many more people that can look at the magazine and see themselves in the magazine.
Sam: And enjoy fashion!
Sophie: Yeah, exactly. And he’s- I don’t know if many people know this, but Edward is disabled himself. And he’s always said that his mum told him, which will stick with me, “If you see it, you can be it.” And it’s just about how important representation is.
Sam: Yeah, he does a lot of work with Sinéad Burke.
Sophie: Yes!
Sam: From Tilting The Lens. So I’ve met Sinéad on a few- Quite a few occasions now, but obviously very well known for those iconic front page, Vogue, representation with a whole host of, you know, disability, neurodivergent and disabled kind of models. I actually collected all of them. I got them in my office- That’s really cool. It took me forever to get all of them. I got around to all the different, you know, Marks & Spencer’s and going, “Where’s the Vogue magazines?!”
Sophie: So our first reasons to be cheerful today is Lifestyle has won another award!
Sam: Another one? Another one!
Sophie: We won the BSME British Society of Magazine Editors award for Diversity And Inclusion.
Sam: That’s really good.
Sophie: Thank you! And I think it just- It just goes to show and champions all the great work that the team, because there’s a big team behind all of this. So yeah, well done to the team.
Sam: Isn’t it funny like some, you know, a lot of people don’t really like awards. And I get why a lot of people don’t like awards, but I think- I think we need it sometimes, like, we need a bit of a validation sometimes. I think it’s lovely. And like you said it recognises not just one single person. It recognises that collective and that group coming together. So well done. Congrats!
Sophie: Thank you. And we were up against some big names such as Vogue and BBC Food.
Sam: Oh wow! Hey hey hey, eat that Vogue. In your face. We love you- We love you Vogue. Please get me on the front cover.
Sophie: Second reason to be cheerful is MAC has launched a BSL virtual service, so-
Sam: Oh, hang on. Back up a minute there. MAC the makeup brand?
Sophie: Mac cosmetics. MAC cosmetics has launched a British Sign Language virtual makeup service which will allow consumers from the deaf community to pre-book a free (FREE!) 45 minute-
Sam: That doesn’t happen in this life.
Sophie: A free 45 minute 1-1 virtual session with a MAC artist of their choice and then they’ll be joined by an interpreter for a personalised tutorial. And then later in the year, the service will also extend to the brand’s flagship store on London’s Carnaby Street. And that will allow customers the option to pre-book an in-person makeup service with an interpreter joining virtually.
Sam: So is this an unlimited amount or is there like a small amount. Do we know like, is there only like a certain amount? Of people that-
Sophie: Oh it didn’t say so.
Sam: My baby don’t thought about that have they? A great initiative. I do a lot on, you know, disability and consumers and how we can make that customer experience a lot better. And I think for anybody, you know, it’s just being, you know, talking with Phyllida about facial awareness, we can- And how these spaces can be really intimidated for a lot of people who are disabled or neurodivergent because they are, you know, they’re not always represented in these spaces and the staff may not know how to interact. So that’s wonderful. Here here! Well done MAC!
Sophie: This news follows the launch of Holland & Barrett’s new BSL resource for women experiencing menopause. I’m not sure if you’ve heard of this, because a study from the University of Wolverhampton found that 60% of deaf women do not have sufficient access to menopause health information and BSL. So Holland & Barrett are trying to meet that need. Hopefully this is just the beginning of lots of things.
Sam: And it needs, I mean, women’s sexual health, you know, I’m working with the University of Keele on a research project about, you know, accessing cervical screening. Because it can just be so- So many barriers there, you know. Yeah. So well done! Yes. Women in particular deserve-
Deserve this. Yeah. Champion. Let’s burn my bra! Sorry, I’m not going to burn my bra, I promise that’s- You don’t need to turn off your screens.
Sophie: Reasons to be cheerful! The third reason to be cheerful for today is I’ve got some awareness dates for your diary.
Sam: Oh bloomin’ heck go on then.
Sophie: June the 17th – 23rd is Learning Disability Week and this year’s theme is “Do You See Me?” Which is all about being seen, heard and valued.
Sam: Love!
Sophie: For more information visit mencap.org.uk/learningdisabilityweek and it’s also Deaf Blind Awareness Week June the 24th – 30th and throughout the week, deafblind.org.uk will celebrate people living with deaf blindness and will be sharing their stories, achievements and personal successes. They want to show that people living with sight and hearing loss often have the same interests, emotions and ambitions as people who are not deaf blind. So for more information visit deafblind.org.uk
Sam: Yeah and you can actually download quite easily a PDF disability calendar, I suppose.
Literally type into any search engine disability calendar 2024 and it will give you a PDF downloadable version and it will have all the amazing celebrations, awareness days. Just really great to circulate if you’re in an office space as well or at home, have it up at home in your office. So yeah, go- Definitely go and do that and encourage more people to do that.
Sophie: So should we get into today’s guest?
Sam: Oh, I think we should. It’s a good one.
Sophie: It’s a good one. Today, we are delighted to be joined by Isaac Harvey MBE. Isaac has a long, long list of credentials. He’s a disability advocate, content creator, president at Wheels and Wheelchairs plus so, so much more. Welcome to the podcast, Isaac.
-Guest Interview: Isaac Harvey MBE –
Isaac: Hello!
Sam: Bonjourno! I don’t know where that came from, but we’re going a little bit Italiano today. There we go. Hahaha. I always get very giddy when I’m around Isaac. We have a lot of fun together, don’t we?
Isaac: Just a bit.
Sam: Yes, just a bit. Last time I saw you, Isaac we were at the Rights On Flights campaign at Parliament. That was- That was a couple of months back. That was amazing. So if you- If no one has heard of that, which you should do, obviously spearheaded by Sophie Morgan and a whole host of amazing, disabled activists. And essentially to make flying as a disabled person much more accessible. So we were at Parliament. How have you been then? How have you been? What have you been up to lately? Anything that we should be- We should know about?
Isaac: Gosh. Where do I begin? It’s been very busy recently. A lot with the Wheels And Wheelchairs and the skating that we do around London. And we’re preparing to do a huge challenge at the- At the beginning of the Paralympics where we’re going to be skating from Brighton to Paris.
Sam: That’s amazing. We would- We want to hear more about that, absolutely. I always feel quite intimidated around you Isaac. Got a very long list of credentials. So let’s start from the beginning, Isaac. So how did you become a disability advocate? I mean, was there a particular moment or experience that sort of lit the fire in your belly, so to speak, that just made you want to start like campaigning and speaking on behalf of the disability community?
Isaac: Yeah I mean there was a moment I guess it was when I joined LinkedIn, in 2021. well, previously to that. So, if- If going a bit of the back story. So when I left school, I fell in love with media and content creation and that’s kind of what I wanted to do because I’ve always had a creative mind and I just knew from the get go I didn’t want to do to the 9 to 5. I wanted to do my own thing. And that was by creating video content and sharing the crazy things that I get up to by vlogging the journeys and things. So that was kind of like the focus. And obviously throughout those videos, I was showcasing what I could do with a disability but I never really spoke about disability in those videos. It was only, yeah, just- I just wanted that fun basically and just filming what I’d get up to. And friends and family kept saying to me, “Oh, you know, you should really talk about disability. You could change people’s perspectives on things and allow others in the community to know more about disability.” And I thought, “Why do I have to do that for?” You know, didn’t- Didn’t really make any sense I was like, “Oh I just want to have fun.
I don’t want to talk about disability.” But it was only until I was given an opportunity to do a public speaking engagement about the obstacles that I faced, such as lifts not working and having to plan ahead.
Sam: Now, I mean, you are absolutely a trailblazer. You know, you started off doing what you do because you love it. And then you found your feet in the- In the community and understood the- The power of, you know, positive representation. I don’t know about you, I think a lot of disabled people can relate to growing up. You were either in that narrative of, you know, triumph over adversity, being that inspiration, you know, or kind of being that very poor tragedy of a disabled person. And I think it’s a really fine line, isn’t it? And it can be really quite a tricky line to carry on when you are in the public eye or when you are a trailblazer like yourself. How do you manage that? Are you conscious of that or not perpetuating these harmful stereotypes? You know, if someone says, “Oh Isaac, you’re so inspirational.” Do you challenge that or do you just go, “Yeah, I am. I am!” You know, how do you- Because you have got such a presence, particularly online, I’m sure many disabled people, myself included, look up to you and admire you. But are you fearful or are you conscious of not perpetuating these harmful stereotypes?
Isaac: It’s an interesting point because, as you say, there’s no grey area. It’s like, we’re really inspirational or, “Look at that disabled person. They can’t do much.” I wish people would see more from a middle ground because, for me, and this has come over time, but, I guess it depends on the intention. I guess when people call me inspirational just for getting on the bus, that’s different to skydiving.
You know, there’s a big difference but I- I also, I don’t really challenge it only because I know people are well-intended, for the most part. So I do kind of use it as a bit of an education moment to really share what I can do but also being realistic and say, “Yeah, I’m actually in a lot of pain right now,” or, “This took me a while to do.” I think just bringing that realism to the table really helps both allies but also those within the disability community. As you said, you know, there’s a lot of people who write in the comments and see the things that I do and they say, “Oh, I didn’t realise I could do that with my disability.” So I, you know, I see it from both angles. And I know most people are well-intended. So I kind of just- I’m just- Very kind about it.
Sam: Yeah. You’re very real because you post a lot about mental health and you talk about, you know when you’re not having good days. And I really commend you for that. I think that is something that we need to always kind of keep a balance with, of course, you know, respect your own boundaries, don’t share everything with the world. But I think- I think you- I think you do that really, really well. I- I- I love that about you. I’m not going to- I’m not going to- I’m bigging you up too much now right? I need to say something nasty- No I’m joking.
Isaac: No no, keep feeding my ego please.
Sam: But through that, you’ve garnered so much support and, like, following from LinkedIn. So now you’ve got a massive LinkedIn presence and it is just through just being authentic and real and just sharing your experiences, isn’t it?
Isaac: Pretty much yeah I mean, it’s crazy to think that I’ve grown so much in such a short period of time on LinkedIn. And that’s just by sharing my story, really. But for me, it’s- It’s a bit of a weird feeling because growing up and looking at other influences, that was what I wanted to be The person with a million followers and loads of subscribers and, you know, be this top person.
But then, when it didn’t really materialise at the time that I wanted it, I really lost a lot of motivation, because with YouTube, I wasn’t really growing any subscribers or any any sort of following. And that’s- And it got to a point where I used to enjoy it. I enjoyed making videos but then I let the views and engagement get to me and I was like, “Okay, what’s the point doing this?” So then that’s when I moved to doing more freelance with my content and then becoming a- Within this advocacy space and then getting the followers. It feels like a bit of a full circle moment.
Sam: So tell us about Wheels And Wheelchairs. So you said that, you know, you just casually dropped it in. That little bombshell there.
Sophie: So Paris! That’s massive! Tell us about that.
So that’s what I was doing!
That’s why I mentioned it! So a bit of backstory, Wheels And Wheelchairs was a group that started in 2012 after a French group, who were doing similar activities in Paris, challenged themselves to skate from Paris to London for the Paralympic games and that’s rollerskaters pushing wheelchair users. When they’d arrived here, the skaters saw- They saw the wheelchair users pushed by skaters and were like, “Oh wow this is such a great concept we should start something here.” And that’s when Wheels And Wheelchairs was born. And then I knew about the group at the end of 2018. Really enjoyed it in 2019. Did Paris Marathon, I’ve done Istanbul Marathon and all these different skating activities but I really got involved in that year that they saw my involvement and how much I really liked it and the potential the group could really bring to the world as well as showcasing what can be done even though you have a disability, that they asked if I’d like to become the President of the organisation.
Sam: How can people get involved then if they want to learn more about Wheels And Wheelchairs?
Isaac: Yeah so we’re on all social platforms, mainly on our Facebook page. Let us know if you’d like to come and then we’ll have a wheelchair ready for you to skate with us in Battersea Park.
Sophie: And tell us about all the other amazing things you’ve been- You’re involved in at the moment.
Isaac: Oh gosh! That’s a long list. I guess another thing that I’m involved in that I never thought I would ever see myself doing would be the fashion space. And rocking it for adaptive clothing.
It’s funny being in that space as well, because I was, and I admit this, I’ve said it publicly many times, but I was someone who mocked the fashion industry. All I saw on a catwalk was really ridiculous clothing but it was only until I- I discovered, and it’s thanks to LinkedIn, that I discovered about adaptive clothing. I’d never heard of that term before. And, yes, I am disabled but I didn’t know that- About adaptive clothing because my mum just made clothes fit me and that’s what I knew about clothing. So to learn about how different clothing, how there’s not much variety for people with different sizes, shapes, disabilities, as well as the different adaptations such as magnetic buttons and straps being in the front rather than the back, really opened my eyes to, like, a whole new world. and then being able to model that clothing and then showcase more representation in the media, I thought was a real great win. But it’s definitely a space which has a lot of drama. But it was a- It’s a- It’s a very interesting space to be in. And I’m glad we’re bringing more representation such as, you know, those models being on the front of Vogue. And I was featured in one of the articles, so yeah, really cool.
Sam: Smashing it. Obviously you’ve got DEWEY fashion and then Victoria Jenkins, one of the big, big players on the scene. But you know Isaac, I’ve been thinking a lot about how I’ve grown in terms of, you know, my disability pride and also accepting help. So I recently moved out of London back to Lancashire, which is- It’s been interesting. It’s been the right choice. But it also means that my mother is about five minutes away from me. Well, my mother was one of the reasons why I actually tried, as a young twenty-something to get out of my hometown, even though I love her dearly. But I’ve come to realisation that, you know, asking for help or receiving help when you have a disability plays a huge part in our success. What would you say to anyone out there who, you know, would love to emulate you. Has got a lot of, you know, respect for you, wants to do a lot of the things but who is maybe a little bit too hesitant to maybe accept that help or reach out for that help, whether that’s a caregiver, whether that’s a PA, whether that’s family, friends. But it can be such a journey for a lot of disabled people. I for a very, very long time, I refused to be in a power wheelchair because I felt that that made me be, or to the outside world, look more disabled. And now I’m like “Oh my goodness, give me as much technology, as many wheelchairs.” I just want to get on with my life. Have you got any tips or advice for maybe our younger listeners and viewers who who are struggling with that?
Isaac: Yeah, I mean even now, I find it quite difficult to ask for help sometimes. Because I feel like I’m being a bit of a nuisance by asking for help but actually, you know, first of all, it’s a barrier that we’re putting up because, for the most part, people are willing to help. And are there to support us in living our daily lives. And it’s also realising that, if it wasn’t for the help, I wouldn’t be skydiving or tall ship sailing or holding the Olympic torch or being able to dress into this adaptive clothing. You know, it’s because of help that gets me to do all of these things. And without it, I just probably would be lying here doing nothing with my life. So it’s, you know, the help is in that way physically, but also the support that I’ve had from my family as well have been, you know, really pushing me to be the best version of myself and never really discouraged me from doing things. You know, I say to my mum, “I’m going to do a skydive.” She’s like, “Okay, if you want to do that, then go for it!” You know, most mums would be terrified, but my mum’s like, “Yeah, if you want to go for it!”
Sam: Isn’t it nice though, I found a bit of peace when it comes to, you know, receiving that help. Like, now, when my mum pops over, I don’t feel like she’s treading on my toes. I don’t feel like she’s there- I don’t feel like she’s there because she doesn’t think I’m capable of doing the laundry I’m like, “Mum-“ Before I was like, “Mum get out my house. Get out my space. I could do my own laundry.” And I’m like, “Happy days. Mum if you want to- You want to mop my floors.
You want to do my laundry. If you- You know what, if you want to make me a cup of tea. Have at it!” It’s a nice place to be, isn’t it? I think that, you know, I think that comes with age.
Sophie: Yes. It does. You’re just much more comfortable in your skin. You just know that it’s well-intended.
Sam: It is well-intended. Yeah. But I think it- I think Isaac made a point. We internalise that. We internalise the maybe shame or the feeling that we’re a burden. And I think one of the biggest advices I can give to any disabled person is, first of all, you’re not. But also, when you start to allow people to be kind and and be there for you- You become the best version of yourself ultimately. I love that.
Sophie: So onto getting an MBE, Isaac. Will you just- I mean. Adding to the list. Tell us about that. How was that?
Isaac: Oh gosh! It’s still sinking in now really because over time and I guess it goes onto accepting disability and what I’m doing but, you know, I don’t really do what I do for awards or recognition. I feel like I’ve got to a point now where I’m just doing it because it’s the right thing to do so when I’d got that email to say that I’d been put on a New Year’s Kings Honours list, I was like, “Okay.” Well firstly I had to find out if it was a spam email or not. Because you never know! I’ll be honest.
[Sam and Sophie Laugh]
Sam: That’s what I would be thinking.
Sophie: That is true! Check the sender details.
Sam: That’s hilarious.
Isaac: And then, yeah, then you kind of have an option if you want to accept it or not. So like, for me personally, it’s like- Yeah, it is what it is. But to be able to accept it and showcase what people with disabilities can achieve, you know, it’s kind of seeing it from the bigger picture of if you put your mind to it, no matter the obstacles that you may face, you can still achieve. So I ended up accepting it. Then I- I wasn’t able to tell anyone about it for a whole month because it had to be announced first before you could publicly say. I’ll be honest, I did tell my mum.
Sam: Oh, yeah.That’s standard though.
Isaac: I know mum wouldn’t say anything and she didn’t.
Sam: My mum would.
Sophie: Bring in all the aunties and uncles.
Isaac: But yeah, it was presented by King Charles as well, which had- It’s a different person every week. And, yeah, I was lucky enough to get- Lucky to have King Charles. And I had a two minute conversation with him.
Sam: What’s he like? Come on, give us the goss.
Sophie: And what did you talk about?
Isaac: I might as well tell this funny story. So I was there at Buckingham Palace, which is where we were getting it and it was 90 people receiving the different awards. So there was knighthoods, OBEs, MBEs, so it’s like the whole lot. People were getting different awards. And for me, meeting someone new is just fine, like I don’t get like starstruck or anything like that. So I was just all prepared for it. And then they did it in two halves. So I was the second half of people who were going in to get the awards and basically there was a protocol that you had to follow. Basically saying when you get in, you have to go forwards, you face the King, then you have to bow your head and you have to go up to him. Then you have to address him as, “Your Majesty.” Then you have to call him, “Sir.” I was like, “Oh my gosh, I’ve only got a few minutes to practice this!” And there’s only one take so I can’t mess this up. So anyway, all of this was going on in my head because I was fine before they told me all of that. So anyway, I went in, I bowed my head, and then I went up and I was about to say, “Your Majesty.” But how he gives out the awards, he’s on this pedestal And, then you you talk to him on this pedestal. But as I’m going forward, he’s come off the pedestal. To come on my level and then to put the award on me and then he stayed down as well. So that kind of threw me off as well. But yeah, we started talking about- Oh, actually, the first thing he said to me was, “I’m sorry I’ve had to make you wait for so long.” I wasn’t expecting to King to apologise to me, so I was like “Okay?” And then we spoke about accessibility and advocacy and my disability work. But I’m one of the many few can say that the King came down to my level.
Sam: Amazing. I love that. Is it true to say that you’re a little bit of a daredevil? You know, skydiving, sailing, skiing. Skiing! Oh, couldn’t think of anything worse. Cold. What else is up your sleeve? What’s on your- Can we call it a bucket list? Do you- Do you plan these things or do you just, you know, take them and seize them as the opportunity arises?
Isaac: To be honest, most of my life’s just going with the flow really I mean, most of what we’ve spoken about were not on the bucket list and they just came up through as opportunities. so, yeah, I just kind of seize the moment when it come, but I’ve been- Someone actually messaged me only recently about surfing, which is something I’ve not done before which would be really cool.
Sam: Interestingly, I’ve just been- I went to Jersey, so I stayed in a fully accessible hotel Maison Des Landes I think it’s pronounced. And they do,- They do inclusive surfing. So yeah, that might be something for you. I’ll WhatsApp you the details.
Sophie: Isaac surfing. So. Yes. Anything else up your- That you’re thinking- You’re just thinking you’re going to try new or that you’ve been recommended to try.
Isaac: Yeah I mean, it was meant to happen but because of the right harnessing it didn’t happen but I may do wing walking one day.
Sam: Oh, petrifying.
Isaac: Yeah just a bit. But I look forward to it.
Sam: Just go and have a cup of tea. Calm down.
Sophie: I just wanted to ask, what is your motivation on the days that you just don’t feel like you want to do anything? Or who is your motivation?
Isaac: It might sound a bit funny but actually it’s my- Disability’s my motivation, actually, because, you know, growing up, having to overcome so many obstacles in my life, I’ve just kind of just got on and pushed through, because there are times and actually, it was through my mental health journey, you know, there were days where I was just like, “Oh, gosh, can’t be bothered to go out and do things.” But because of the amount that I’ve had to push myself because of my disability, I- I did still get up in the morning and still go out and I would still enjoy the times that I- I would be out, but yeah, it’s- It’s thanks to my disability and through my mental health journey and coming to terms with that, then allow me to have more of a realisation that my disability has always been that something that’s got me out of bed because it was, you know, I would be blinded by all of the things that I was achieving. You know, some of the things that I mentioned, you know, internally, I just wasn’t happy with what I was doing. Even I was doing all of these amazing things. And the pictures showed me smiling, but actually behind-the-scenes, it was just a totally different story. And it took me a while to really come to terms with my mental health and actually take a step back and learn about mental health and mindset and wellbeing and meditation and just being there for self-care. So, you know, it was- It’s been a journey, and still on that journey. But I’m a lot more- Have a lot more internal peace and happiness, which is mixing with the disability. I feel a lot more energised and ready to crack on.
Sam & Sophie: I love that
Sam: and I love your honesty. I think that will really help a lot of people who are tuning in to kind of- Yeah, to not feel so alone because I think a lot of people will really resonate with that. I resonate with that. Absolutely. So thank you, Isaac. It’s been an absolute joy and maybe you can push me out of my comfort zone and maybe you can get, you know, like, strap me to a flight- A plane.
Sophie: Isaac, thank you very much for your time today.
-Car Chat With Matt –
Sophie: So Isaac was great! I feel so inspired. Like, there’s so many new things I want to try now.
Sam: I mean, I’m petrified because I just said that he can put me on top of a plane. So what have I just committed myself to? That’s it now, isn’t it?
Sophie: That’s it, you’re going on a plane.
Sam: Oh, no. You and your big mouth, Samantha!
Sophie: Hi, Matt.
Matt: Hello.
Sophie: Welcome.
Matt: Thank you very much. How are you guys?
Sophie: We’re good, thank you.
Sam: Is it time for Car Chat with Matt?
Matt: Big vocals.
Sam: Powerful.
Matt: That was- That was strong.
Sam: That was wasn’t it?
Matt: That was good. Woke me up. I enjoyed it. Got me energised. So today, we’re talking a bit about what’s next for electric cars? So we’ve seen a lot of questions recently about availability of electric cars. There’s a lot more electric cars on the scheme. Some people are excited about that, some are slightly concerned or anxious about it. So I just kind of wanted to explain a little bit about why that’s happening and where things are headed and hopefully talk a bit about what sort of technologies we can expect moving forward that might make the electric car experience a little bit better. So, first of all, people are seeing increasingly that more electric models are available on the Motability scheme. Sometimes there are electric versions of cars available but not the petrol or diesel versions of that same car available. So first of all, the first thing to acknowledge there is that’s not to do with Motability. That’s the car industry as a whole. So to explain that quickly, without getting into the boring nitty-gritty, there is something called the Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate, the ZEV mandate coming in. And that means this year, the government has said car manufacturers need to sell at least- 22% of their car need to be electric. So 22% of the cars they sell need to be electric this year. So that’s giving them a real kind of push. And they’re going to get fined quite heavily if they don’t do that. So that’s why we’re seeing more electric cars being pushed. So, given that electric carsare likely here to stay, they’re not going anywhere. They’re here for the long term. At least that’s the plan currently. Where is that technology headed? Is anything improving? Is anything changing? Well, the current focus is all about energy density in batteries. That’s where the real kind of advancements are
Sam: Longevity?
Matt: It’s pretty much that, yeah. So what they’re looking at is increasing the amount of energy a battery can hold without increasing its size. So there’s a couple of ways they’re doing that. One of them is looking at different battery chemistries. So effectively what materials go into the battery. And there’s a couple of thing they’re looking to achieve by doing that. One of them is using fewer of those scarce and valuable metals that go into a battery. So that helps bring the costs down, if nothing else. And the other is increasing range. So you can already see there’s advancements in range. Some of that has been through software developments, some of that has been for aerodynamic advancements. Some of that’s been through battery advancements.
But we’re already seeing cars on the scheme, like the new Renault Scenic for example, on paper does 379 miles I want to say, but don’t quote me on that. But that means, you know, 300 miles in the real world is entirely realistic. Now 300 miles is five hours of driving. Most people are going to want to take a break after that. So we’re already seeing improving ranges anyway. But some of the technologies that are in the works could increase that quite substantially. So the main one is solid state batteries. That’s the- That’s the big one that people are working on.Now it’s not that far away, this technology or it’s not, at least if you believe the hype from the car manufacturers, who all say, “Oh, we’re on the cusp, this is right around the corner, don’t you worry.” But they’re all- They’re all sort of saying within ten years these are going to be mass produced and available in cars. So Toyota, for example, who believe they will be producing one within the next- I think they said by 2030 they’ll have this in cars. So that’s six years. Again, take that with a pinch of salt. But their solid state battery they believe will have a range of around 600 miles, which is pretty far. But not only is it the long range that’s impressive. It’s they’ll be able to charge faster. So they reckon that 600- I think is about 621 miles they quoted. They reckon that would also charge within ten minutes. So you’ve got longer- Longer range, faster charging times, which is good. The other thing which is probably slightly less important to Motability customers but important for electric cars anyway, is that the longevity of the batteries look quite promising as well. So what that means is, they’ve tested them and some of these batteries are going through sort of a thousand charge cycles and have lost only, say, 5% of their range. So a thousand charge cycles could be something like 3, 4, 500,000 miles. So there’s good longevity there as well with the batteries which is- Which is quite important. So that’s kind of the next big thing in terms of battery tech really. The other technology that people do regularly bring up and say, “Is this coming soon? Is this around the corner?” Is hydrogen.
So the advantage of hydrogen would be that you could fill up in, like, 5 or 10 minutes but at the moment it really doesn’t look like it’s anywhere near, if ever. The reasons for that are currently they’re just not-There’s about ten places in the whole of the UK to put hydrogen in a car. So no one’s going to buy one if they can’t put hydrogen in it. Car manufacturers aren’t going to make hydrogen cars if no one’s going to buy them. So there’s a sort of chicken and egg situation.
Sophie: London buses use hydrogen, don’t they?
Matt: Yeah. So I think there’s probably a strong use case for commercial usage. There’s definitely that- There are definitely use cases for hydrogen. The other issue is like, it’s just the energy efficiency. Electric cars are just much more efficient. So if you think the amount of energy that’s got to be used capturing the hydrogen, compressing it, transporting it, but just put that energy into an electric car battery and it will go further-
Sam: Why can’t you make a car out of solar panels?
Matt: That’s a good question. I don’t know.
Sam: Just slap a solar panel on it. Or like make the whole body out of the solar panel.
Matt: I think someone with more engineering nouse than me would have to answer that.
Sophie: And in this country is there enough sun to power it all the time?
Sam: I got this tan from Lancashire.
Matt: There are some things- You can pay- It’s usually an optional extra but you can have a solar panel in the roof-
Sam: Can you?
Matt: But generally doesn’t add that much- It doesn’t actually add that much range.
Sam: Thought I was just about to be a multi-millionairess then.
Matt: So yeah, I mean, for people that is sort of holding their breath for hydrogen, I- My personal opinion and I may well be proved wrong by the car industry is I wouldn’t hold your breath on the hydrogen fuel cell thing. So lastly, that kind of brings me to the charging side of things, whether there’s any developments in that landscape, aside from the fact that chargers is getting faster, which is- Which is kind of good. There’s a few other things in the works. There’s a Chinese brand called NIO. They produce electric cars. They have battery swapping stations in several countries. They’re looking to move to the UK soon and are planning to bring their charging stations- Battery swapping stations with them. So effectively you drive in and it literally just unbolts the battery from the bottom of the car, puts a new one in and you drive off and that’s done in under five minutes.
Sophie: It’s like Formula 1.
Matt: It’s pretty- It’s pretty clever. It is pretty clever. So yeah, that whole process happens in under five minutes and it’s quite clever because you can- Say you actually pay for a smaller battery in the car, you could- If you was planning a really long journey, you could pay to upgrade briefly to one of their larger batteries so that you can use that for the week if you’re doing a long journey, the next time you swap, you can downgrade back to your regular battery, that kind of thing. So yeah, so I mean, again, that is a specific tech, that’s not going to work on every car currently because it has to be built into the car. But it’s just interesting that manufacturers are looking at other ways around the charging problem. We’ve also seen wireless charging being trialled in lots of places. Even Nottingham had a trial where they used black cabs, the parking, don’t know what you’d call it, like a taxi rank, I guess. They had some wireless charging there so that when taxis were waiting, they were just getting a bit of A top up, which is a cool idea and it’s being trialled in lots of places. So again, we will see, you know, how likely that is to come to fruition. But, there’s obviously bonuses there in terms of people not having to plug in cables, which is a real difficulty for someone in the disabled community.
Sam: Well totally. My friend came to visit me, my first friend came to visit me up in Lancashire.
And he pulled up in a Tesla. We don’t get many Teslas around where I live. But we went for a walk and I was in my power chair, and he turned to me and went, “Do you get range- Range anxiety?” I went, “What rage?” He went, “No, no, no range anxiety.” And we had a conversation about my power chair and his Tesla about range anxiety. So I felt like part of the group.
Matt: That’s pretty much it really. I mean the other thing but this is much further down the line is there’s been some prototypes of car charges that are sort of autonomous. So they sort of- Almost like a robotic arm that finds a charge port and plugs in. So that’s really cool. From an accessibility standpoint, if there’s some more research into that space and if you think long term, once cars are autonomous, which is a quite a long, long way away, but you can imagine a space where you get home and your car just goes off and charges itself somewhere, which would be if, you know, if you can’t charge at home. That’s a potential solution. But some more-
Sam: The technology is already there because you can have them to to carry your wheelchair in. There are arms- That are in the roof box aren’t they. So it’s not too out of the realms of possibility.
Matt: That’s me done.
Sam: As always- [Imitates explosion]
Sophie: Mind blown?
Sam:Mind blown.
Sophie: That’s for the captions.
Sam: Yeah.
-Break and Outro-
Sam: And that’s it for this episode of The Motability Lifestyle Pod. Thanks to our producer, Charlotte Mason at Insanity Studios, Saffron Mirza and Abi Sandler and our Editorial Assistant, Lucie Rhodes at Wonderly.
Sophie: If you liked this episode, click Follow or Subscribe. Tell all your friends and please leave a review and rating if you’re listening or Like and Comment if you’re watching. If you want to tell us what you thought or if there’s something you’d like to hear, come and say hello on Instagram @Motability_Lifestyle_Mag and for some behind-the-scenes content, follow us on TikTok @MotLifestyleMag. You can also watch the full video on YouTube with captions and BSL.
You can find us on @MotabilityLifestylemagazine. Finally, if you want more information about the Motability scheme, go to Motability.co.uk or if you want to learn more about the Motability Foundation, visit motabilityfoundation.org.uk And that’s it. I’m Sophie-Marie Odum.
Sam: And I’m Samantha Renke.
Sophie: See you next time.
Sam: Tara!
