Private occupational therapy in the North West

Qualifying as an occupational therapist in 2001, Kirsty specialises in the areas of housing & equipment and moving & handling. She is based in Cheshire, visiting clients at home in Chester, Crewe, Birkenhead and Macclesfield. She will also travel to neighbouring counties, including Greater Manchester and Cumbria. Kirsty is qualified in carrying out Blue Badge mobility assessments.

Having worked primarily in the field of housing, Kirsty 's experience includes identifying and recommending minor/major housing adaptations for all age groups. She also delivers moving & handling risk assessments, recommending Telecare equipment, such as fall detectors and sensors, to help keep her clients safe when moving around their home.

Treating clients in their own environment, Kirsty implements bespoke rehabilitation packages to improve her client's independence in their activities of daily living. She works collaboratively with the family or carers to encourage clients to reach their own treatment goals and improve their overall quality of life.

Kirsty is a member of the College of Occupational Therapists Specialist Sections in Independent Practice.

With over 15 years’ experience, Stephanie has worked within acute and inpatient rehabilitation settings, treating clients with a variety of conditions including stroke, traumatic brain injury, acquired brain injury, spinal injuries and multiple sclerosis. Currently specialising in neurological rehabilitation, Stephanie carries out various complex assessments and treatment, including functional and cognitive assessments, splinting and prescribing specialist equipment.

Stephanie has completed various training courses to accompany her clinical work, including splinting and introductory Bobath modules. Stephanie works with adult clients at home, visiting areas in North West England including Cheshire, Derbyshire, Manchester and Wrexham.

Stephanie aims to work in a client centred way, ensuring they reach their rehabilitation goals and increase their independence. She keeps her clinical knowledge up to date, attending training courses and conferences, as well as maintaining her membership with the Royal College of Occupational Therapists’ Specialist Sections in Neurological Practice.

Shubhra is an expert Occupational Therapist specialising in Functional Rehabilitation. She is based in Warrington and covers a large client base across North-West England including Cheshire, Lancashire, Liverpool, and Manchester. With over 20 years of experience, Shubhra has an extensive knowledge of different conditions and client needs including brain injury, heart conditions, fractures and orthopaedic injuries, stroke, and Parkinson’s.

Delivering comprehensive assessments, Shubhra works with clients to develop personalised treatment plans. Her priority is to ensure each client reaches their maximum level of independence through tailored activities, rehabilitation plans, and equipment provisions. Shubhra can advise on a wide range of equipment, aids, and home adaptations including hoists and specialised beds. She also has a keen interest in mental health, helping clients with anxiety and depression through motivational interviewing, stress management, and effective planning.

Shubhra has worked in a specialist Cardiac Rehabilitation team as an expert occupational therapist, supporting clients with angina, heart disease, and post-surgical recovery. Working with clients and their families to inform them of potential changes to their lifestyle, risk factors, and long-term management. Shubhra worked effectively in a multidisciplinary team to ensure the personal goals of the client were met.

Shubhra regularly undertakes courses and attends workshops in a wide variety of areas including neuro linguistic programming.

Laura is an OT based in Stockport, visiting clients with a wide range of needs across Manchester and the surrounding areas. She has experience working with children and adults with a range of physical disabilities, learning and sensory impairments, and mental health conditions. This experience has provided her with an array of interpersonal skills, professional attributes, and knowledge to work collaboratively with clients and their families with the aim to improve their overall quality of life.

Laura's main area of expertise is in relation to housing adaptions and the assessment and prescription of specialist equipment. She carries out expert assessments and provides tailored treatment plans to her clients to help them achieve the most from life. She identifies needs focusing on mobility, transfers, activities of daily living, access, health & safety, and sensory ability, formulating goals jointly with the client, and formulating treatment plans. Laura provides recommendations on the provision of equipment and adaptations to meet these goals. She addresses client’s individual needs and wishes and assists them in the creation of a home environment that suits both the client and their wider family.

Jo is a highly skilled OT based in Cheshire, covering a client base across Greater Manchester, Warrington, and North Wales. She has extensive experience in moving and handling, assessing for equipment, adaptations and support packages, reablement, and the management of fatigue, anxiety and breathlessness.

Jo has facilitated training sessions for other health professionals on managing breathlessness, writing effective goals and working in an enabling way. An article detailing her work within reablement was published in Occupational Therapy News, which she later presented to other teams in the country.

Jo has volunteered for her local Alzheimer's Society branch committee and recently trained as a Dementia Friends Champion. Jo always goes the extra mile for her clients, striving for excellence and individualised care.

With over 10 years of experience, Sam is an expert in her field of neurology, working with clients with a range of neurological conditions. She works closely with her clients, carrying out full assessments and providing bespoke treatment plans to help her clients gain as much independence as possible. Sam is based in Cheshire and visits clients across the North-West of England.

Sam supports her clients with a range of needs including behavioural difficulties, cognitive assessments and rehabilitation, planning and execution of activities, upper limb treatments for both gross and fine motor deficits, assessment of ADLs, balance and co-ordination, visual perception and sensory deficits. Sam also provides training and advice to families and carers to help them understand her client's condition and the most effective ways to care for them, as well as training carers in safe moving & handling techniques.

Sam works closely with the charity, Headway, on a regular basis. She has completed a Bobath course in normal movement and has completed training in neurological splinting and casting to manage abnormal tone.

Julie specialises in adult rehabilitation across North West England and the West Midlands including, Manchester, Liverpool, Wolverhampton, and Stoke-on-Trent. She has been delivering expert care and advice for over a decade, covering neurological conditions, brain injury, Parkinson’s disease, dementia, Alzheimer’s, anxiety, and depression.

Julie has extensive experience evaluating safety concerns in the home and community, conducting assessments to support suitable treatments and facilities, and the review of care packages. This includes suggesting specialist home adaptations and aids, such as beds and seating. She strives to enhance her client’s independence, delivering the best possible care and advice in regards to both physical and mental well-being. She can provide expert treatment on areas including fatigue management, routine planning, daily living skills, behaviour management, social integration, and anxiety management. Julie also spends time providing invaluable support to families and carers, whom she recognises are just as important to the overall care experience.

Julie qualified in 2006 from York St John University College. Her career has seen her working in a variety of settings, including in-patient psychiatry, community services, and forensic services. Julie is a member of the Independent Practice specialist section of the Royal College of Occupational Therapists, and actively engages in peer supervision on topics surrounding mental health, brain injury, and dementia services, and is experienced working as part of a multi-disciplinary team.

Hazel is a highly skilled Occupational Therapist and an Approved Disability Analyst. She promotes positive therapy outcomes and works in partnership with clients and their families. She also has extensive knowledge in psychological processes and experience in many evidence based psychological therapies such as mindfulness and cognitive behavioural therapy. Hazel is based in Penrith, Cumbria, and visits clients across the North West of England.

Hazel works with clients with a variety of needs, including, acquired brain injuries, amputations, spinal injuries and neurological conditions. She helps her clients with vocational rehabilitation and pain management, to allow them to live life as fully as possible.

Achieving degrees in Occupational Therapy and Psychology, Hazel has a broad knowledge that she is able to draw from to help her clients reach their maximum potential. She also designs and delivers training for health professionals, service users, and carers.

Alice is an expert Occupational Therapist with over 25 years’ experience. She is based in Penrith, Cumbria, delivering comprehensive assessments and interventions for clients across the North West of England including Lancashire, North Yorkshire, and Dumfries and Galloway.

Her background in both physical and mental health allows her to be truly holistic in her approach, considering the full impact of the individual’s condition in all aspects of their life and health. She has gained her clinical experience working in the NHS, community, and private sectors. Alice treats clients with acute and chronic conditions such as multiple sclerosis, brain injuries, stroke, amputations, orthopaedic conditions, mental illness, dementia, and chronic pain or fatigue.

Working closely with her client and their family, Alice ensures that a goal orientated program is developed and that these goals are realistic and attainable. Her area of expertise is focused on adaptions to the home or work environment and assessments for specialist seating. She also supports clients with effective time planning, energy conservation, anxiety management, and maintaining motivation.

Sorrel is a highly skilled OT specialising in Functional Rehabilitation. She is based near Lancaster and covers a client base across Lancashire, Cumbria, and Greater Manchester. Sorrel has over a decade of experience practising as an OT, working with adults with a diverse range of health conditions, including stroke, acquired brain injury, dementia, and musculoskeletal injuries.

She has experience in areas such as fatigue management, motivation and anxiety, and activities of daily living. Sorrel provides community and home-based assessments, with the aim to deliver a comprehensive analysis of a client’s needs and offers tailored physical rehabilitation.

Sorrel is extensively trained in stroke and acquired brain injury rehabilitation, specialising in communication in stroke, cognitive rehabilitation, and the physical rehabilitation of neurological disorders.

She has also undertaken many postgraduate training qualifications in areas such as fatigue management in MS, advanced Parkinson’s intervention, multi-disciplinary support of learning and assessment, falls training and prevention, and anxiety management.

Sorrel is a member of two specialist sections at The Royal College of Occupational Therapists, for Older People and Independent Practice.

Gill is a highly experienced OT based in Keswick, Cumbria. She covers a large client base across North West England and Scotland including the Lake District, the Borders, and Dumfries & Galloway. Gill specialises in Functional Rehabilitation and Housing and Equipment, supporting adults with injury and illness to retain independence at home and feel confident accessing the community.

Drawing on her extensive experience, Gill helps clients to improve their strength and mobility through bespoke activity programmes and supportive aids. She also conducts housing assessments to evaluate how a client can effectively move about their home and advise on suitable adaptations and equipment provisions to support a client’s needs.

Gill is a member of the Royal College of Occupational Therapists Specialist Sections in Independent Practice, Older Adults, and Rheumatology.

Holly qualified as an occupational therapist in the USA in 1997, choosing to specialise in hand therapy quite early on in her career. She has completed levels 1 and 2 of the British Association of Hand Therapists (BAHT) training courses, enabling her to provide expert hand therapy and rehabilaition to clients. Holly is based in Cheshire, visiting clients in North West England, Lincolnshire and Yorkshire.

Holly has developed her clinical skill in various settings, including in NHS and private hospitals and in the community. She was OT lead at The Alexandra Hospital in Manchester and developed the hand therapy service there. This included the development of and adherence to relevant hand therapy protocols and incorporating the assessment and fitting of pre-fabricated splints. She also provided splinting for children with cerebral palsy, including tendon lengthening and improving function.

Working with clients with acute and chronic conditions, Holly provides bespoke and intensive treatment programmes to increase function and improve overall independence. Using a holistic approach, Holly works with clients on all aspects of rehabilitation, including mobility and function, improvement of independence in home and leisure tasks and advice on home adaptations and equipment procurement.

Jan is an expert Occupational Therapist who specialises in Hand Therapy and hand related conditions. She is based in North West England, treating clients in Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Lancashire, and Cheshire.

Jan is highly experienced, working as a specialist Hand Therapist for over 30 years. She provides rehabilitation and therapy to clients with hand injuries, working with both adult and paediatric clients. She has previously worked in regional units for burns and plastics, as well as establishing the role of hand therapist in two private hospitals.

Visiting clients at home, Jan provides clinical assessment of orthopaedic trauma, congenital and chronic conditions, as well as assessing clients who have suffered burns or have had plastic surgery. To improve function and increase the client's levels of independence, Jan provides treatment including mobilisation and exercise regimes, splinting, fracture bracing, desensitisation, and scar management.

Jan is a member of the British Association of Hand Therapists (BAHT) has been on the executive committee for 6 years, 2 of which she was Chairman of the Association.

Jill works with adults at home in North West England, including the Greater Manchester area, Cheshire, Derbyshire, and Lancashire. With over 20 years of experience, Jill has worked in a variety of settings advising on equipment, adaptations, and housing. Jill supports adults with a wide range of injuries and conditions including multiple sclerosis, motor neurone disease, learning disabilities, autism, and stroke. She assesses a client’s mobility and safety in the home, providing recommendations on equipment and adaptations to support a client maintain independence.

Jill has completed training courses to accompany her clinical work, including a MSc with Distinction in Accessibility and Inclusive Design, Train the Trainer, and ILM Level 3 Award in Leadership and Management. She is also a member of the Royal College of Occupational Therapists Specialist Section in Housing.

Specialising in Functional Rehabilitation and Housing & Equipment, Carlie provides expert occupational therapy to adult clients. She has worked internationally but is now based in Lancashire, visiting clients at home in Blackburn, Blackpool, Lancaster and Warrington, as well as areas of Greater Manchester and Cheshire.

Carlie has worked across a number of clinical settings, including acute & forensic mental health, in-patient & community rehabilitation and psychogeriatric services. She specialises in working with clients with neurological and physical conditions, including dementia, stroke, and multiple sclerosis. Having worked in such different environments, Carlie has developed her core OT skill, including how to work as part of a team and the importance of including clients and their families within the rehabilitation process.

Carlie works with her clients to establish meaningful rehabilitation goals and develop a bespoke treatment plan. Carlie is also skilled in neurological rehabilitation, the provision of equipment and housing adaptations, fatigue management strategies, and return to work programmes. Carlie aims to help her client improve their quality of life and overall independence within their home and community.

Carlie is dedicated to her on-going education and professional development. She completed an Occupational Therapy MSc in 2016, focusing on the understanding of autonomy for people with dementia and how OT's enable autonomy for vulnerable clients.

Based in Ormskirk, Lancashire, Matt is an OT who specialises in Housing and Equipment. Matt works with adults of all ages across the North West including Manchester, Liverpool, and Cheshire. Matt conducts holistic housing assessments, evaluating all aspects of a client’s home and recommends suitable adaptations and equipment to maximise their independence and quality of life.

Matt has extensive experience advising on a range of home adaptations, both minor and major, including bathroom modification, stair lifts, and hand rails. He can recommend standard and specialised equipment based on the client’s individual needs, whether they are recovering from a short-term injury or adapting to life with a long-term condition. Matt’s overall aim is to help each client regain independence in the home, enabling them to complete activities of daily life such as cooking, cleaning, and washing.

Matt is highly committed to his profession, maintaining a membership to several prestigious bodies including the Royal College of Occupational Therapy, both their Housing and Independent Practice sectors, and The Occupational Therapy Hub.

Denise is an experienced Occupational Therapist located in Liverpool, visiting clients across Merseyside including St Helens and Warrington, as well as Lancashire and Wrexham. She supports clients in their home or work environment, working collaboratively to identify treatment goals and enhance independence in their everyday activities. Within this bespoke treatment plan, Denise provides advice and recommendations on specialist items of equipment such as seating, electric powered vehicles, hoists and specialist beds. She looks at safer moving and handling around the home, as well as adaptations that can improve the client's quality of living.

She specialises in working with adults and the elderly, assessing their seating, moving & handling, and rehabilitation needs. Denise has completed a number of postgraduate courses to continue her learning, as well as gaining a qualification in Train the Trainer. Having gained experience working in community settings and for social services, Denise currently provides private assessments to clients in their own homes. She treats clients with a variety of needs, including complex orthopaedic, neurological and cardiovascular conditions. Assessments can include Blue Badge and mobility assessments, as well as looking at Disabled Facilities Grants (DFGs).

Denise is a member of the Motor Neurone Disease Association Special Interest Group (North West Region) and also the Allied Health Professionals Network of the National Osteoporosis Society.

Working as an Occupational Therapist for over 25 years, Lisa has worked in many different settings in the NHS, Local Authorities, and in private practice. Lisa specialises in Housing & Equipment, delivering expert home functional assessments of adults and children with highly complex physical disabilities. This can be a result of illness or trauma, neurological and congenital conditions, birth injuries, and chronic pain. Lisa is located in Derbyshire and visits clients across the UK.

Lisa works holistically to identify Moving & Handling and Seating & Postural needs with the client and their family, successfully implementing solutions to enable individuals to participate in day to day activities, engage in purposeful roles, and support them to lead an independent life.

She has held a number of senior and managerial positions within the local authority setting, being responsible for occupational therapy teams and the delivery of the service.