Nick Wilson, 49, from Towcester, aka Disabled Adventurer, has been shortlisted for the Positive Role Model Disability Award at the 2025 National Diversity Awards for his exceptional work promoting disability awareness and accessibility.
His mission is simple: to open the world up to make the outdoors and adventuring more accessible for everyone, wherever they are. Whether going up a mountain or his local high street in his wheelchair, Nick shares his journey to show how making the great outdoors accessible to people has the power to change lives.
A former Sergeant in the British Army, Nick’s 14-year service included deployments to Northern Ireland, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan. His distinguished Army career ended in 2013 when the culmination of injuries sustained from carrying too much heavy equipment left him physically incapacitated.
Nick lives in constant pain from seven prolapsed discs and a degenerative disease of the spine and is unable to sit or stand up for longer than 10 minutes. Compounding this, he has PTSD from his time on the front line.
Despite these setbacks, Nick has transformed his personal challenges into a powerful platform for advocacy and change.
Rock bottom
When he came out of the Army, Nick started a chauffeur business working for himself. “I saw it as my coping mechanism. I worked 16+ hours a day, seven days a week to keep myself busy. But it drove me over the edge,” Nick admits. He started to make bad choices, lost money and was told he couldn’t have contact with his daughter. “I hit rock bottom and attempted suicide in August 2016. I simply saw no point to my life if I couldn’t see my daughter,” he says.
Nick spent time in residential rehab for his depression and PTSD and during this period saw a path ahead of him. “When I came out, I started a consultancy dealing with mental health issues for others and founded Talk Mental Health, a charity aimed at supporting men facing challenges. This was important as I knew first-hand that waiting lists are very long – too long – if you have a serious mental health problem.”
Vicious circle for disability community
“When people think of accessibility they think of infrastructure. Community and social groups are vital for our wellbeing but if you’re disabled it’s much harder to access such things.
“In my area there are no disabled community groups and that’s not unusual,” says Nick. “Knowing that disabled people are vulnerable to social isolation leading to depression and suicide, this astounds me. Effectively, it is a vicious circle in which disabled people can quickly spiral downwards.”
The risk is very real with disabled people three times more likely to die by suicide than people who are non-disabled.
The peace in nature
“Getting outdoors is the way I manage my negative thoughts and feelings. However, when reliant on a standard wheelchair, it’s limiting. I want to get off the path – literally,” explains Nick who finds joy by heading into the woods, going across fields and up into the mountains. Working closely with Rock Engineering the all-terrain chair Rock Climber was built to enable Nick to go off-road – and show what can be done with the right support. He has been on many adventures with this wheelchair including being the first disabled person to ascend Snowdon solo.
Another design Nick likes is the Quantum all-terrain chair which can go into the woods, over grass and through mud. However, with a price tag of £15-£30,000, such experiences are out of reach for many.
“My idea is that places like the National Trust can buy a chair and hire it to visitors so they can access the great outdoors and find the peace in nature,” says Nick. “It may seem a short amount of time someone can spend doing this, but the thrill and happy memories stay for a long time making these experiences invaluable.”
Bringing others on the journey
Nick is acutely aware how sharing his adventures can help others. He films his escapades and posts them online so that people can share in the thrill and maybe even try it for themselves.
“Some of my community can’t physically leave the house but like watching the videos to see my experience,” says Nick. “They tell me they feel good that we’re pushing the boundaries and love to see how much can be done with the right equipment and mindset.”
When people struggle to socialise for whatever reason, an online community is the next best thing. Nick considers his community to be an extended family comprising people who care about each other. And with over 15 million views in one year, Nick’s work is clearly resonating with like-minded people.
National Diversity Awards
“The unsung heroes shortlisted in the National Diversity Awards help us to realise how much goodness and humility there is at the heart of our communities,” says Paul Sesay, CEO of Inclusive Companies and founder of the National Diversity Awards. “The work these people do and the empathy they show is more important than it has ever been. We are living in a time when funding and support are limited which makes community action an invaluable resource on which so many people rely. Indeed, for some, it really is a lifeline.”
“If I was fortunate enough to win the Award, it would give me the platform to reach out and help even more people,” says Nick, admitting he needs to manage his PTSD nerves and anxiety to attend the National Diversity Awards in Liverpool on September 19th. “Crowded rooms make me anxious but I’m focusing on meeting disability and community role models that I look up to,” says Nick.
Such role models are essential, Nick believes. “Diverse role models help show people what’s possible and instil belief that they can do things, too.
“If you can get someone to believe their dream is possible, they can see what tomorrow could bring. And that’s important because thinking tomorrow could bring something good encourages and empowers people and can even save lives.”
http://www.nationaldiversityawards.co.uk/
Media contact for National Diversity Awards: Katherine@prworkshop.co.uk / 07787 533143
