We have had a very busy year at STEPS, welcoming new ground-breaking technology, winning awards, and celebrating our clients’ personal achievements.

In this short article, we take a look back at some of the highlights from 2021.

Business Growth

In January we were delighted to report a 300% increase in staff numbers since the £250,000 investment from NPIF-Mercia Debt Finance. The NPIF investment was in the form of a three-year loan and enabled us to make significant operational improvements to grow our facility.

The loan was invaluable in the early days of business and has been fully repaid.

Expansion of Therapies

At STEPS we are always looking for ways to improve our service and expand the variety of therapies we can offer our clients and we were delighted to launch art psychotherapy earlier this year, which gives clients a voice and a means of sharing their emotions and feelings without the need to speak.

We have also added hypnotherapy as a therapeutic option to support recovery.

Enrichment Activities

Additional activities form an important part of the recovery process at STEPS, and we have been delighted that we have been able to take clients on accessible fishing trips, out to support the Sheffield Steeler’s Para Ice Hockey team and even scuba diving in our hydrotherapy pool and Sheffield Ponds Forge.

Scuba Diving with Disability - STEPS Rehabilitation

We have also enjoyed visits from many furry animals, including Leo the Pony, Thomas and Theo the Alpacas and a litter of adorable Labradors, who stole everyone’s heart! Betty one of the black Labrador puppies is now living with one of our nurses and is at STEPS 4 days a week much to everybody’s delight!

Summer Garden Party

In the Summer, we were delighted to host a charity tea party, to raise money for Horatio’s Garden charity and to announce our first ever Ambassadors for 2021-2022 – individuals who inspire and help others. This year’s ambassadors include previous clients, David Noblet, Dr Ed Hudson and Ed’s fiancé Dr Isabel Alsop.

Neurologic Music Therapy

Following discussions with Clinical Director, Toria Chan, Rebekah Keenan (NMT) and Hannah Wright (Senior Physiotherapist) began to trial NMT techniques with physiotherapy interventions and have seen continuing improvements amongst clients in their ability to walk further in distance with improved balance, speed and more efficient gait cycle.

Award Wins

We have been absolutely delighted to win not one, but two awards this year! Our mantle piece is filling up and we were over the moon, to add the Insurance Post Claims & Fraud Awards, ‘Rehabilitation Initiative of the Year’ and the Personal Injury ‘Rehab Provider of the Year’ award to our collection.

Garden Room

We have unveiled our beautiful garden room, which offers a relaxing space for our client psychological therapy sessions.

Reimagining Rehabilitation

2021 has been an exciting year at STEPS, and we were thrilled to announce the arrival of cutting-edge rehabilitation technology equipment, which is housed in our very own RehabHub and MindPod room With the help of Fourier Intelligence and MindMaze we are now able to provide clients with access to world-class robotic and VR technology.

We are now also an assessment centre for a range of exoskeletons, including the ReWalk, ReStore and ExoAtlet.

Recently, we were able to expand the technology on offer at STEPS, with the launch of the MindPod Dolphin, a digital therapeutic platform that delivers brain repair. We are using this innovative neuro-restorative technology to support intensive rehabilitation for people recovering from brain injury, spinal cord injury, complex trauma injuries and stroke. We are incredibly proud to the be the first facility in the north of the UK to have this pioneering technology, and one of only 2 facilities in the UK.

Case Studies

Throughout the year, we have been honoured to share the rehabilitation journeys of our clients, including Mike, who had a motorcycle accident that resulted in an upper limb amputation, Ed who suffered a spinal fracture and stroke after a bicycle accident and Julian, who suffered a life-changing brain injury when was knocked over by a moped.

You can view our client’s stories here.

We would like to thank everyone for their continued support, and our team for their unwavering dedication to providing the very best rehabilitation to our clients.

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.