Joy for Peterborough hydrotherapy users as city pool opens up for community use

There has been joy after it was announced that community hydrotherapy services would be offered at a pool in Peterborough.

Users have been left without the vital facilities since July 1, when a trial to run hydrotherapy at Lime Academy in Orton was ended by the city council.

The former pool at St George’s has been closed since the COVID pandemic, and demolition work has now begun.

Pool users were left devastated by the lack of hydrotherapy facilities – but have now welcomed a move from the Lime Academy to re-introduce sessions.

Starting next week, sessions will be available on Thursdays during term time. Sessions will cost £10, with carers going free, and will run between 3.45pm and 4.45pm and 4.45pm until 5.45pm.

St George's Friends and Service Users lead Karen Oldale said: “Lime Academy staff appreciate the importance of access to hydrotherapy. Many of their former pupils used St George's. As a staff they have worked together to be able to offer these two sessions. It's kind and much appreciated. It is really good news for all those these sessions can help.”

There has been criticism of the council’s decision to start the demolition of St George’s – despite planning permission to turn it into classrooms for Heltwate School not being granted.

However, a Peterborough City Council spokesperson said there was no reason to wait for permission to be granted, and decommissioning of the building had begun last year when the decision to ‘mothball’ it was made. They said : “There is no reason for the owner of a site to await planning permission in order to decommission and remove an existing building. The council made the decision to no longer operate a pool on the school site last year. The site will not be used for a pool in the future and that is why it is being removed, so the space can be available for other uses.”

A planning application for a new hydrotherapy pool at the Thistlemoor GP surgery has been submitted – and welcomed by Karen.

Karen is also urging people to have their say on the proposals, after they were re-designed earlier this year following concerns the pool was located on the first floor. It is now proposed to locate it on the ground floor.

She said: “The news that fresh plans for hydrotherapy pool at Thistlemoor Medical Centre have been submitted is very welcome. I am pleased to see many of the main accessibility concerns we previously raised have obviously been addressed.

"The service users’ group is now looking at the plans more thoroughly. We will share our views with the Council.

"I would encourage anyone with experience or interest in hydrotherapy and the new centre to do so too. It would be good to try to ensure proposed facility is as accessible and beneficial for the residents of Peterborough, and beyond, as it could possibly be.”

For booking information for the Lime Academy pool, visit : http://hydrotherapypeterborough.com/community/st-george-s-community-hydrotherapy-pool-12973/news/lime-academy-community-hydrotherapy-sessions-starting-thursday-12th-october-59656