West Berkshire Therapy Centre reopens tomorrow (Saturday)

Centre finds permanent home after year-long search

THE West Berkshire Therapy Centre is on the move.

The centre has been providing exercise and therapy to people with mobility problems since it opened in 2014.

It was situated off Lower Way before being moving on to the Moors pavilion, after the landlord was granted planning permission for their building.

Centre director John Holt said that the pavilion could not accommodate all of the equipment and that Saturday sessions were disrupted because of sports teams using the site.

Now the centre has found a new and improved home at the Frank Hutchings Community Hall in Bradley-Moore Square, on a long-term lease from Thatcham Town Council.

Mr Holt said that the hall offered “ideal space and access, with excellent parking and other facilities suitable for disabled individuals in need of a safe place in which to take exercise under expert and understanding supervision”.

The centre closed on Wednesday and will reopen in its new hall at 10am on Saturday, April 2.

The service, which is unique in the south of England, already helps more than 200 people each week who have mobility or other problems and who, therefore, are unable to exercise safely. The centre will also include several new items of specialised equipment.

It was awarded a £32,000 grant from Greenham Common Trust’s ‘Pitch to the Panel’ event last year.

The trust’s chief executive, Chris Boulton, will visit the centre at 4pm on Monday, April 4, to see how the trust’s grant has been spent. Staff, volunteers and clients will celebrate the opening of their new home.

Mr Holt said: “The centre is most grateful to Thatcham Town Council for its help in making available premises in which the centre will be able to develop and grow with confidence.

“The centre is now in a position to provide well over 10,000 exercise sessions each year to help those with mobility challenges to be more active, safe and independent.”