Care home appeals for support in reopening vital hydrotherapy service

Seven Springs, a care home run by leading disability charity Leonard Cheshire, is raising funds to refurbish its activities area and hydrotherapy pool, which closed down in 2018. 

The service is home to 30 adults with physical disabilities, where staff and volunteers offer personalised support to ensure residents are able to live as independently as they choose. A key part of this independency is through group activities that keep participants healthy and active, including access to a hydrotherapy pool.  

Lorraine Lennox, who’s 71 and a resident at Seven Springs, used the hydrotherapy pool to help with poor circulation.

As a wheelchair user she has no function in her feet and difficulty moving her arms and legs. ‘Hydrotherapy is like getting into an ordinary bath, which I haven’t done for donkey’s years,’ she explained. ’I find my hydrotherapy sessions relaxing and therapeutic.’

The benefits of using the hydrotherapy pool for Lorraine included improved circulation, increased range of movement, relaxation and the opportunity to stand up again.

The new facility will be the only one of its kind in its area, with mother and toddler groups, aqua aerobics groups and NHS services having made use of the hydrotherapy pool when it was open. 

‘Hydrotherapy pools can be extremely beneficial for disabled people, helping to improve and maintain their quality of life for as long a time as possible,’ explained Jason Semple, Service Manager at Seven Springs.

‘When the facilities at Seven Springs were no longer fit for purpose, we were extremely disappointed to have to close the hydrotherapy pool down. 

‘We are always focused on ensuring our residents and members of the local community have access to activities that will make a real and positive impact on their lives. As such, support and donations from the local community are absolutely essential in making our vision a reality.’

Businesses interested in donating to the refurbishment can contact Lizzie Armstrong, Regional Fundraiser for Leonard Cheshire, at elizabeth.armstrong@leonardcheshire.org.

Media enquiries

For further information and high res images please contact Erin O’Reilly via erin.o’reilly@leonardcheshire.org.

Notes to editors 

Leonard Cheshire has three care homes across Kent that supports disabled people with a range of physical disabilities, learning disabilities and often complex needs. 

• Seven Springs in Tunbridge Wells is home for 30 adults with physical disabilities. 
• Chipstead Lake in Sevenoaks is home to 24 adults with physical disabilities. 
• Sobell Lodge in Staplehurst is home for 21 adults with physical disabilities.

One in five of us will be affected by disability at some point in our lives. 

In the South East, there are currently twice the number of hydrotherapy pools available for animals compared to those available for people. In the UK, hydrotherapy is not seen as a routine service for managing a long-term mobility problem, meaning disabled people find it extremely difficult to access this service.

With such a lack of provision on the NHS, some families are being forced to travel long distances for treatment and paying over £75 per visit to a hydrotherapy pool (Research by Muscular Dystrophy UK).