Falls prevention physiotherapy at home in Havering

Worried about falls, or finding the garden, the walk into town or a day out harder than it used to be? A Chartered Physiotherapist, registered with the HCPC, visits older adults at home across Havering, from Romford and Collier Row to Hornchurch and Upminster. We work on strength, balance and stamina to help you keep doing what you enjoy: Romford Market on a Saturday, an evening at the Queen's Theatre, walks in the borough's parks and country parks, or time with the grandchildren. Every programme starts with a falls risk assessment at home.

Book your free 15 minute call

Homes in Havering

Much of Havering is suburban, with houses and gardens rather than flats. Gidea Park, Emerson Park and Upminster grew as garden suburbs, and Elm Park was planned between the wars as a garden city around its new station. Harold Hill was built after the war by the London County Council, mostly as brick terraced houses with some flats, and Collier Row grew with estates between the wars. Closer to Romford town centre and down towards the riverside at Rainham and Beam Park there are newer blocks of flats. For most people that means a staircase, a front path and step, and often a long back garden with a patio step, a lawn and a shed. With a physiotherapist who comes to your home, every visit starts with how you get around your own home, and we practise the stairs, steps and garden paths you actually use, at a pace that is safe for you.

Where we visit in Havering

We offer physiotherapy home visits across the borough, including Romford, Gidea Park, Rise Park, Collier Row, Harold Hill, Harold Wood, Ardleigh Green, Emerson Park, Hornchurch, Elm Park, South Hornchurch, Upminster, Cranham, Rainham, Wennington and Rush Green. That covers postcodes RM1, RM2, RM3, RM7, RM11, RM12, RM13 and RM14, and parts of RM4, RM5 and RM6. There is no travel charge anywhere in London.

Coming home from hospital

Many Havering residents are treated at Queen's Hospital in Romford, or at King George Hospital in Goodmayes, and are then supported by NHS community teams. SteadyMotion is an independent private service, separate from the NHS, so we can work alongside your NHS care, while you wait for it, or after it ends. After a fall, a broken hip, or a hip or knee replacement, we work on your walking aid, strength, balance and the stairs at home. Read more in our guide to home physiotherapy for older adults.

Getting out and about again

People in Havering often want to get back to Romford Market in the Market Place, the shops in The Liberty and Romford town centre, the high streets in Hornchurch and along Station Road in Upminster, or the libraries in Romford, Hornchurch, Upminster and Harold Hill. Others want to swim or exercise again at Sapphire Ice and Leisure, Harrow Lodge Leisure Centre or Central Park Leisure Centre. For walks there is Raphael Park in Gidea Park, Harrow Lodge Park, Langtons Gardens, Upminster Park near the old windmill and Tithe Barn, and Hornchurch Country Park on the old RAF airfield. Bedfords Park sits on a south facing slope with wide views over east London, which makes it a good place to work on hills. Distances in Havering are longer than in inner London, so the walk to the bus stop matters. Trains run on the District line through Elm Park and Hornchurch to Upminster, on the Elizabeth line from Romford, Gidea Park and Harold Wood, and on the Overground shuttle between Romford, Emerson Park and Upminster. We practise the walk, the slopes and the station steps, step by step, on the routes you actually use, to help you get out with more confidence.

What a programme can look like

These are examples, not real clients. Every programme is planned around the person and what they want to get back to.

Example: Saturday at Romford Market. Starting point: someone who went to Romford Market every Saturday but stopped after a fall, because the crowds and the walk from the bus stop now feel too much. What we work on: stamina, leg strength, balance when stopping, turning and being jostled, and carrying shopping. The goal: the Saturday market trip again.

Example: a night at the theatre. Starting point: someone who loves the Queen's Theatre in Hornchurch but worries about the steps to their seat and standing up after a long show. What we work on: getting up from low seats, stepping up and down without a rail, balance in dim light, and the walk back to the car or bus. The goal: an evening at the theatre again.

Example: the garden in Emerson Park. Starting point: someone with a long back garden who has stayed indoors since a wobble on the patio step. What we work on: the patio step, walking on grass and uneven paving, carrying a watering can, and getting down to the borders and back up safely. The goal: looking after the garden again.

Example: home to Elm Park after a knee replacement. Starting point: someone home after a knee replacement who wants to get back to taking the District line from Elm Park into town. What we work on: knee movement, stairs at home and at the station, walking distance, and moving from the frame to a stick. The goal: the trip into town by tube again.

Other areas we visit

We also visit older adults at home in nearby Barking and Dagenham, Redbridge and Bexley, and across the rest of London, with no travel charge.

Questions about home visits in Havering

Yes. We practise on your own step and paths, work on balance on grass and paving, and practise bending, carrying and getting up from the ground, so the garden is part of the programme.
Yes. We build up leg strength and stamina for slopes at home first, then practise walking uphill and downhill with you, with rests planned along the way.
Yes, once you are well enough to exercise at home. We are private and separate from the NHS, so we can see you alongside any NHS care.
Yes. Most people we see are over 65. Family members can book the free call on their behalf.
The same as anywhere in London, with no travel charge. Current prices are on our Home Visits page.

Talk it through first

A free 15 minute phone call with our physiotherapist, at a time that suits you, to talk through what is happening and whether a home visit is right. No obligation to book a visit.

Family members and carers are welcome to book on someone’s behalf.