Musculoskeletal & rehabilitation practice
Spruce Vessel is a two-room clinic for stubborn joint and muscle problems — the ache that returns every winter, the shoulder that never quite recovered, the knee that only complains on stairs.
You leave the first session with a written plan, not a follow-up booking and a guess.
Treatment
Every appointment includes assessment, treatment and a plan — these are just the starting points. If you are not sure which fits, describe the problem in the booking form and we will put you in the right room.
Hands-on work for restricted, irritable joints and guarded muscle — neck rotation that has stopped short, a stiff mid-back, a hip that grips after sitting. Used to create room to move, then immediately paired with movement so the change holds.
The main body of work for tendon pain, recurring strains and back problems. We measure what a tissue currently tolerates, then increase it in steps you can feel working — loaded in the room first so you know exactly how it should feel at home.
Structured rehabilitation after knee, shoulder and hip surgery, working to the timelines your surgical team has set. Early sessions protect the repair and restore range; later ones rebuild strength and confidence on stairs, hills and uneven ground.
For anyone whose training keeps breaking down. We look at your recent weeks of running or lifting, test strength and single-leg control, watch you move, then rebuild the week rather than removing it. Appropriate whether you race or run to the bus.
Your first visit
Most people arrive unsure whether they will be asked to undress, whether it will hurt, and whether they will be sold a course of twelve sessions. Here is the whole appointment, in order.
What the problem stops you doing, how it behaves across a day, what you have already tried and what you want back. Bring scan reports or surgical notes if you have them; they are useful but rarely decisive.
About 15 minutesMovement, strength and control testing for the area and the joints either side of it. Wear or bring shorts and a vest so the region can be seen and moved — nothing more is needed.
About 15 minutesHands-on work where it is indicated, then the first exercises loaded in the room so we can both see the response. If something makes the problem worse, we find that out here rather than at home.
About 20 minutesAn explanation of what we think is going on, your written programme, and a realistic number of appointments. If physiotherapy is not the right answer, we will say so and tell you who to see.
Final 5 minutesIndex
Grouped by region rather than by diagnosis, because most people book describing where it hurts. Your problem does not need a label before you arrive.
Some things belong elsewhere first: sudden unexplained weakness, a joint that cannot bear weight at all, pain with fever or rapid unplanned weight loss, or chest and breathing symptoms. Tell us in the booking form and we will point you to the right service the same day rather than taking the appointment.
Between appointments
Two treatments a week cannot out-argue the other hundred-and-sixty hours. So the programme is deliberately short, specific and written down — three or four exercises, the load, and what a normal amount of discomfort feels like afterwards.
A note on how we work
“Most people who come here have already been told to rest, and resting stopped helping some time ago. The useful question is not what is torn, it is what your body currently tolerates and how quickly we can raise that. So we measure, we load, and we tell you when you no longer need us.”
Sessions & fees
No packages and no commitment to a course of treatment. Pay per session, and stop when the plan is running itself. Insured patients are welcome; bring your authorisation code to the first appointment.
| Session | Length | Included | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial assessment | 55 min | Full history, physical testing, first treatment and written programme | £68 |
| Follow-up treatment | 40 min | Re-testing, hands-on work and the next step of your progression | £52 |
| Extended rehab review | 55 min | Strength and control re-assessment, rebuilt programme, return-to-sport criteria | £64 |
| Post-operative session | 50 min | Stage-based rehab to your surgeon's protocol, with milestone notes | £60 |
| Small-group mobility | 45 min | Supervised group session, six places, current patients and past patients | £16 |
Questions
No. You can book directly. If you are claiming through insurance, your policy may still require a referral before it will reimburse, so it is worth checking with your insurer first — the clinic does not need one either way.
Loose shorts for anything below the waist, and a vest or strappy top for shoulders, neck and back. If you are being assessed for running or lifting, bring the shoes you actually train in. Scan reports and surgical notes are helpful if you have them.
Assessment sometimes reproduces your pain briefly, because that is how we identify the source. Hands-on treatment should feel firm rather than sharp, and you can stop it at any point. Exercise is allowed to be uncomfortable during and mildly sore the next day, but it should settle within about twenty-four hours — that rule is written on your plan.
You will be given a realistic estimate at the end of the first session. Irritable but simple problems often need three or four; tendon pain and post-surgical rehabilitation are measured in months, with appointments spaced further apart as you take over the programme. If progress stalls, we change the plan or refer you on rather than repeating sessions.
Usually yes, in a modified form. Complete rest tends to make the return harder. We would rather adjust your volume, pace, range or load for a few weeks and keep you moving than ask you to stop entirely, unless there is a clear reason — a fresh fracture or a strict post-operative restriction.
Then the programme is wrong and we will shorten it. A plan of three exercises done four times a week beats eight exercises abandoned after nine days. Tell us honestly how much time you have and it will be built to fit that.
Yes. Early slots run from 7:30am on Tuesdays and Fridays, and Thursday evening appointments run to 8pm. These fill first, so note them as a preference in the booking form and you will be offered the next one available.
Book an assessment
Describe the problem in your own words — no clinical terms needed. You will get a reply with two or three appointment options, and a note if we think a different service should see you first.