2015 news roundup
Valentine's Day Raffle
Our Valentine's Day raffle raised a fantastic £110. Thanks to everyone who donated prizes or bought tickets and to Tesco which provided a beautiful bouquet to add to the other four prize packages. A giant Teddy donated by a WBTC client was the star prize!
Welford Park Snowdrops
Welford Park very kindly selected us to be one of their charities for 2015. A team of volunteers manned our stall on 22nd February, selling plants and birthday cards, also running a tombola of teddies and chocolates. Thanks to everyone who donated things or helped on the day. Mr & Mrs Puxley who own Welford Park will present us with a cheque shortly, from entrance money on the day, so a huge thanks to them too.
Mayor's Fundraising
Following a very busy year working for his officially adopted charities for 2014-15, we were delighted to receive a cheque for a magnificent £1,706.34 from Councillor Gary Johnson, Mayor of Thatcham, at his annual civic reception on 1st May. As well as this money, Gary raised very considerable publicity for the Centre in his year in office. Well done and thank you from everyone at WBTC!
Vacancies
We have vacancies for an experienced Physiotherapist and a Therapy Gym Supervisor.
Saturday work, to cover opening hours of 10 - 3. Competitive salaries with a Saturday allowance. Fixed-term contract positions to 31st March 2016, with the possibility of an extension.
Please download the full details here or email johnmholtbsc@aol.com for more information.
Charity Day success
We are delighted to have received a cheque for £4,500 from Donnington Valley Golf Club, money raised on their charity day on 18th July. It is super to have so much support from the local golfing community.
Thank you to everyone who took part and helped make the event such a success and thanks to those of our service users who proposed us to be a beneficiary of this wonderful event.
West Berkshire Disability Alliance AGM
On 10th September WBTC hosted the AGM of West Berkshire Disability Alliance (WBDA during which over twenty WBDA members enjoyed a tour of the site.
Chairman Mick Hutchins and WBDA members assembling before their AGM
Relocation of West Berkshire Therapy Centre
We are moving in October from Clerewater Place to our new address, which is:
The Sports Pavilion,
The Moors Playing Field,
The Moors,
Thatcham
RG19 3AZ
The final day at Clerewater Place, will be 14th October. We will be unable to provide any service on 15th and 16th October while the equipment is moved. Our phone number will remain unchanged, as 01635 864561.
We look forward to starting our service on Monday 19th October at The Sports Pavilion and would like to thank everyone for their understanding and support.
Reducing the risk of pressure sores for wheelchair users
Pressure sores are a potential problem for many wheelchair users and to others spending long periods of time sitting down. The risk can be reduced if the seating is correctly designed and adjusted. Recently the West Berkshire Wheelchair and Seating service acquired a novel, high tech mat to help check if any of its wheelchairs need adjusting, to help reduce the risk of users developing pressure sores. The cost of such sores can be high, both to individual wheelchair users who could face months of discomfort and a restricted social life, and to the NHS where the medical treatment bills can run to thousands of pounds.
West Berkshire Therapy Centre's clients include many wheelchair users, some of whom find the journey to the Wheelchair Service's clinic at the Royal Berkshire Hospital too difficult. So staff at the Therapy Centre invited the NHS Wheelchair and Seating Service to hold a 'surgery' at their Centre in Thatcham, booking in a dozen wheelchair users whose pressure risks were assessed and reduced by the NHS staff, with several vital adjustments made to the wheelchairs.
The high tech assessment mat is packed with sensors that send an image to a computer screen, showing up any pressure hot spots. By adjusting things such as the width of the chair, the shape or length of the cushion, footrest and armrest positions, etc, the pressure profile can be spread more evenly, hence reducing the risk that the wheelchair user might put too much pressure on any one part of the skin
Lead Occupational Therapist at the Royal Berkshire Hospital, Moyra Pugh, said 'from our point of view that was a very successful afternoon. Wheelchairs were adjusted, minor repairs and pressure care readings were taken and new wheelchairs, cushions and parts were ordered. The comments from the wheelchair users were very positive and it was well worth doing.'
West Berkshire Therapy Centre is unique in the country. Its power-assisted equipment helps people with movement problems and other disabilities to take exercise safely, helping to improve mobility, walk better with less risk of falls, helping weight management and general well-being. The Centre moved recently to the Pavilion at The Moors Sports Field in Thatcham, providing about 200 individual exercise sessions each week and is one of the finalists in Greenham Common Trust's "Pitch to the Panel" event on 12th November.
John Holt, Director
Race Night - Thursday 29th October
Our Race Night raised a wonderful £878 for the Centre! Many thanks to everyone who helped organise the event, attended on the night or provided raffle prizes and support
Cake bake
John from West Berkshire Therapy Centre thanking Kirsty Wretham and Josh Blackwood of SMS Environmental for their support, following their successful cake bake event.