CHILDREN who struggle to walk due to disability are being given a step in the right direction, thanks to a physio’s invention.

Staff at Copford’s Kids Physio Works have adapted a treadmill to include a screen with a game on it to help motivate children who walk on it improve their strength, stride and posture.

Chris Smith, lead physiotherapist, believes it is the only piece of machinery of its kind in the world.

A prototype of the walker has operating for a week and about 20 children have been benefiting from it, including Lenny Pyne, seven, from Earls Colne.

Mr Smith said: “Lenny has quadriplegic cerebral palsy. He has a lot of stiffness in his muscles and weakness. The prognosis was for him never to walk without intensive rehabilitation.”

Lenny goes to the centre for two-hour intensive sessions each week and during school holidays and it has taken about four years for him to be able to walk.

Mr Smith said: “The walker machine will increase his strength and step length and give him better awareness of his posture, and it is fun.’’ The machine works by children watching a screen that contains one of three themes – pets, the zoo or bugs.

Green lights turn on when children take “good steps” by using their body’s motion in the right way. After ten green lights go on, applause is sounded and scores can be accumulated.

Certificates are awarded to the children after sessions. Mr Smith said: “Doing two hours of physio is hard graft and he can get an award at the end of using this.

“It is a real carrot for the kids.”

He said the idea came after his team visited an event in London last year and realised there was nothing like the machine around. The treadmill is a safe way of assessing a patient's movement as they are in a controlled environment and speeds can be altered.

The amount of their own body weight required for the walking can also be adjusted as they develop strength over time.

Mr Smith said: “We have been trying it over the last week or so, and while we have had to make some tweaks, on the whole it has been a real success.”

It is hoped a charity or manufacturer will take it on.

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