Falls prevention physiotherapy at home in Lewisham

Worried about falls, or finding the hills and the walk into town harder than they used to be? A Chartered Physiotherapist, registered with the HCPC, visits older adults at home across Lewisham, from Deptford and Brockley to Catford and Sydenham. We work on strength, balance and stamina to help you get back to the everyday things you enjoy here, like the market by the clock tower, a wander round the Horniman Gardens, or a walk up Hilly Fields to look out over London. Every programme starts with a falls risk assessment at home.

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Homes in Lewisham

Lewisham has a real mix of homes. Brockley, Ladywell and Catford are known for Victorian and Edwardian houses, and many of the larger ones are now split into flats with shared stairs. Down in the south of the borough, the Downham and Bellingham estates were built between the wars as cottage estates, with small houses, gardens and some low blocks of flats. In Deptford there are council estates with tower blocks, such as the Pepys Estate by the river, and around the town centre there are new high rise flats. Many homes sit on sloping streets, so there are often steps up from the pavement or down to the garden. Every visit starts with how you get around your own home and garden. As a physiotherapist who comes to your home, we practise the stairs and steps you actually use, at a pace that is safe for you.

Where we visit in Lewisham

We offer physiotherapy home visits across the borough, including Deptford, New Cross, Brockley, Telegraph Hill, Lewisham, Ladywell, Hither Green, Lee, Catford, Crofton Park, Honor Oak Park, Forest Hill, Sydenham, Bellingham, Downham and Grove Park. That covers postcodes SE4, SE6, SE8, SE12, SE13, SE14, SE23 and SE26, and parts of SE3, SE15 and BR1. There is no travel charge anywhere in London.

Coming home from hospital

Most Lewisham residents are treated at University Hospital Lewisham on Lewisham High Street, run by Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust, 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

There is plenty locally to get back to. Lewisham Market runs every day at the top of the High Street, and Deptford Market fills the High Street on market days, close to St Paul's Church. Green spaces include Hilly Fields, Blackheath, Ladywell Fields along the River Ravensbourne, Manor House Gardens in Lee, Mountsfield Park, Sydenham Wells Park, Mayow Park and the lake at Beckenham Place Park. The Horniman Museum and its gardens in Forest Hill are a favourite day out, and the Waterlink Way follows the river for a gentle, mostly flat walk. Leisure centres such as the Glass Mill opposite Lewisham station, Forest Hill Pools and Wavelengths in Deptford, along with libraries in Catford, Deptford and Downham, are good places to stay active and meet people. The borough has no Underground, so people rely on buses, the DLR from Lewisham and Deptford Bridge, the Overground through Brockley, Honor Oak Park, Forest Hill and Sydenham, and trains from stations such as Catford and Hither Green. Many streets climb steeply, around Hilly Fields, Telegraph Hill and Forest Hill especially. We practise the walk to the bus stop or station, the slopes and the platforms, step by step, on the routes you actually use.

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: the top of Hilly Fields. Starting point: someone who walked up Hilly Fields most weekends for the view, but since a fall has kept to the flat streets near home. What we work on: leg strength, stamina for slopes and balance coming back down, starting on gentle inclines and building up to the top. The goal: sitting at the top of the hill enjoying the view again.

Example: the market by the clock tower. Starting point: someone who shopped at the market every few days but now feels unsteady on the busy High Street with a shopping trolley. What we work on: balance while pushing and turning a trolley, walking among crowds and the bus journey home. The goal: regular trips to the market again.

Example: the garden steps in Downham. Starting point: someone in a cottage estate house who has stopped going out to the back garden because of the steps down from the kitchen. What we work on: strength, step practice with a rail, and balance for carrying a watering can or a cup of tea. The goal: time in the garden every day.

Example: a day at the Horniman. Starting point: someone home after a hip replacement who wants to take the grandchildren to the Horniman Museum again, a walk and a climb from Forest Hill station. What we work on: hip strength, walking without a stick on the flat, then the hill up London Road and the paths through the gardens. The goal: a day out at the Horniman with the family.

Other areas we visit

We also visit older adults at home in nearby Greenwich, Bromley, Southwark and Tower Hamlets, and across the rest of London, with no travel charge.

Questions about home visits in Lewisham

Yes. We practise the front steps, the path and any steps into the garden, along with the stairs inside, and build up your strength and balance step by step.
Yes. We practise the walk to the station, using the platform, steps or lift and getting on and off the train, so each part of the journey feels manageable.
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.