Why Is Hydro So Important?
Hydrotherapy involves stimulation and gentle exercise in water at a constant temperature of 33-36 °C. The gravity free environment offers benefits and teaches skills transferrable to every-day life, in the health and wellbeing of individuals with complex needs, such as:
- Loosens tight muscles
- Assistance with joint movement
- Improving spatial awareness
- Improved breathing
- Boosts immune system
- Stimulates blood supply, improving the function of internal organs
- Relief of pain and muscle spasm
- Freedom of movement increasing independence to standing in water
- Increased attention span and impulse control, concentration and focus alongside the ability to follow directions
- Multisensory stimulation
Our Hydrotherapy Journey
Our Hydrotherapy dream began when the concept of Next Step was first born back in 2005 as a group of parents of young adults with complex needs and disabilities that attended Ravenscliffe found that there wasn’t a suitable provision for their children to attend once they had finished school. The Day Service was born at our King Cross facility, developing from a couple of small, ground floor rooms to 3 Day Services across Halifax and a Respite Facility in the heart of Ripponden.
Over the years we have been fortunate enough to access Hydrotherapy at local schools with regular, weekly slots. As the needs and volume of students attending school increased, the availability of the slots became restricted. The slots were often once a week and over lunchtimes, this restricted the daily activities for our Next Steppers and interrupted meeting their personal care and dietary needs.
As such, the grand plan began!
Fundraising commenced with a sponsored walk, the great NST tuck shop, games night held at Luddenden Foot Cricket Club and perhaps the most memorable, the Leeds half marathon. Cam and Adam with the support of their friends, Harriet, Emily, Emma, Ross, Nathan & Laura, began training to meet the challenge and before long found themselves toe to tarmac on the streets of Leeds City Centre and beyond! The team completed the marathon in just 3 hours and 6 minutes and found themselves hitting the headlines. Completing the marathon is an incredible achievement of which we are all so proud.
In addition to the fundraising efforts of the team we were fortunate enough to receive so many donations from friends and businesses that know us here at Next Step. We were also successful in applying for Grants and managed to secure the funding required to break ground and turn our dream into reality. Work began in the summer of 2021 and continued throughout the rest of the year, completing ready for a dip in the new year.
Thank You
We would like to extend a huge thank you to those that have supported us on our journey to Hydrotherapys’ new home at our Day Service. We are immensely thankful for all of the support we have received in donations from friends, businesses and Grants, their support is invaluable to all at Next Step.
Our first dip…