Campaign to create accessible campervan for disabled children smashes target

A family who launched a fundraising campaign to build an accessible campervan for disabled children say they’ve been “blown away” by people’s kindness.

Jemima Alexander and Cody Selby have never been able to go on a camping holiday with their daughter Cali, seven, who was born with a rare chromosome condition that means she is tube fed and needs oxygen at night.

Not willing to give up on their dream of going on family camping trips, they embarked on an ambitious campaign to raise £14,000 to help cover the costs of converting an existing campervan into one that is fully accessible.

The couple smashed their initial target, raising more than £19,000 in just three days, and have now extended their Crowdfunder to £23,000, which will cover the costs of the rest of the van conversion, estimated to be £25,000 in total.

The van, christened Accessible Iris, will offer potential solutions to problems including wheelchair and equipment storage, access to reliable electricity and capacity for bed space in accommodation.

It will eventually be available to hire so that disabled children and their families can enjoy campervan holidays together.

Speaking about the project, Cody and Jemima said: “We didn’t initially set out to raise the full £23,000 because we were being realistic about the time constraints set on our family by having a disabled child, work, Covid burst bubbles, terminally ill relatives, etc.

“It actually takes a great deal of time and work to organise a crowdfunding campaign. But needless to say, we have been blown away by peoples kindness and support.”

The money will also go towards employing someone for an eight-week period to assist Cody, who has thus far been working on the project single-handed.

Once this has been achieved and Iris is completed, Jemima and Cody also hope to fundraise to subsidise other families’ trips in Iris, which will be rented out via the Bristol-based platform, Quirky Campers.

CEO of Quirky Campers, Lindsay Berresford, told Bristol24/7 that Iris will be the first of its kind. “Over the years, we’ve had lots of wheelchair users specifically getting in touch,” said Lindsay.

“And although we’ve got some vans that can work collapsible wheelchairs, we haven’t had anything that has either got a ramp or a lift, so much to our distress and sadness have had to turn away multiple customers.”

(Left to right) Cali, Cody, Jemima and Alba are looking forward to getting away together in Iris – photo by Salina Ramoutar

Cali was diagnosed with Edwards syndrome at birth. After Cali came Alba, who is now five and has never been camping with both her parents as the family struggled to find a way of accommodating their love of camping with the challenges of Cali’s medical requirements.

However, taking trips away, or abroad, has not been their only issue.

Jemima explains: “I would stress that it’s not just about holidays. I’ve not been able to travel or see my own family with Cali – we’ve been there a handful of times over the years.

“It’s got to the point where it’s too difficult for our children to see their grandparents in their own house because it’s too hard to get there.

“And I think there are families like ours who would love to visit friends and families just for weekends, but they can’t because their houses aren’t accessible.”

She continued: “We would love Iris to be used by people just to reconnect. And that’s so important after the time that we’ve had over the last 18 months of the pandemic.”

Speaking to other families of children with disabilities, they discovered this is a wide-reaching problem – there are often struggles to make trips away to family, special occasions or on holiday, due to a low supply of accessible travel and holiday options.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Cody has been heading up the Accessible Iris project himself, converting the once standard long-wheelbase high-roof Peugeot Boxer into a space that will allow for wheelchair fastenings, bunk beds and a state-of-the-art heating system.

£6,500 has already been donated from sponsors and companies to support the cost of converting Iris from van to campervan. The remaining £18,350 will go towards making the vehicle fully accessible.

Following Iris’ finishing touches, Cody and Jemima plan to list her on Quirky Campers by Christmas of 2021.

Main photo: Ronit Meranda 

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