1 week Ago By [email protected] (Lauren Davidson)
Grimsby's only hydrotherapy pool - built thanks to extensive community fundraising in the early 2000s - is under threat of closure. Since opening in 2007, the Hydrotherapy Pool at Humberston Park School has helped children and adults with a range of disabilities, alleviating muscle pain and joint stiffness and helping their mental wellbeing. But due to a lack of fundraising since the Covid-19 pandemic and energy bills rising annually, the pool is now at risk of closing for good - either completely, or to the wider community.
And today, Grimsby Live is calling on its readers - many of whom helped fund this incredible facility in the first place - to help save it. Speaking to Grimsby Live , Trustee and Business Manager at Humberston Park School, Gemma Rylatt, said: "The pool has been open for many years and there's been a lot of fundraising over the years, but since Covid, the donations coming in have virtually dried up. "The biggest problem is the fall in our income and the cost of the utility bills have gone up.
We used to pay £12,000 for the year for our energy bills and we're looking at £30,000 this year, so we're looking at the possibility of having to close the pool to outside users or closing it completely. It's devastating. The pool supports many adults and children with physical disabilities (Image: Donna Clifford/GrimsbyLive) "It's a beautiful pool and so well-maintained.
It's been there for so long and we've seen so many people have so many benefits from using it. A child can be really tight in their muscles and struggling, but you get them into the water and you see them relax and smile. "The benefits you see are just amazing, and we've had feedback from parents saying it's the best night's sleep their child has had for a long time after they've been in the pool.
" Nine-year-old Luna has autism and additional needs, and has been using the hydrotherapy pool on a weekly basis for a number of years. Her mum, Kelly Porte, told Grimsby Live she feels there is a lack of resources in Grimsby for children with additional needs, and said that the family "rely" on the pool as a fundamental resource. The pool is a fundamental resource for many people in the area (Image: Donna Clifford/GrimsbyLive) She said: "Luna is completely non-verbal and she gets quite overwhelmed if we try and take her to busy swimming pools.
We take her to the hydrotherapy pool religiously every Saturday morning - it's the thing that Luna looks forward to the most. She will wake up in the morning and pass me her swimming costume straight away. "In a town like Grimsby, there's nothing else like this for SEN children.
It is so difficult to raise kids with additional needs in a small town like ours where things just aren't catered for. It's rare to find something this enjoyable because planning anything is so stressful. "So when you go somewhere that you've booked especially for Luna where she has the pool to herself, it's so reassuring, peaceful and quiet.
She burns so much energy and has so much space in that pool, and for the rest of the day she's so relaxed. We rely on this - the pool is so important for the kids and families who use it." Arthur, 9, suffers with Quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy and uses a wheelchair.
He has been using the pool twice a week since he was two years old and dad Dan Ingram said the facility "massively helps him". He said: "Arthur is permanently in a wheelchair and the pool helps release the tension in his muscles, improves his overall strength and allows him to relax a little bit more. He uses it once or twice a week as part of his physiotherapy and rehabilitation plan.
Arthur Ingram in the hydrotherapy pool (Image: Hayley Nunn) "Without it, Arthur wouldn't have progressed as well as he has. He's had to learn everything, from being able to sit up in his wheelchair to being able to get around in his walking frame. I don't think this facility is replicated anywhere in the area.
Because the pool is so warm it releases his muscles - if I take him to a normal pool he goes rigid - but the hydrotherapy pool relaxes his muscles and allows him to build his strength. It's not something that can be replicated at any other swimming pool. "Some of the most vulnerable and chronically poorly children use this pool.
" Trustee Gemma is keen to hear from individuals or local businesses who wish to support the upkeep of the pool through donations and fundraising efforts. She can be contacted by email on [email protected].
uk . One-off donations to the pool can also be made through this link . Keep up to date with all the latest breaking news and top stories from Grimsby with our free newsletter "It would be great to have a partnership with any local businesses or anyone who wishes to support us.
We will happily take them round the pool and talk them through the benefits for the people who use it," Gemma continued. "It's the last hydrotherapy pool in the area and it's not just for the school, it's for the community - and we'd like to keep it that way." Anyone wishing to use the pool can also contact Gemma on bmhpss@hpark.
org.uk ..
