Army chief launches £5m appeal to fund vital therapy centre for injured troops

12 April 2012

Tall, fit and broad-shouldered, Major David Bradley looks the very model of a modern army officer as he works out on a fearsome-looking weights machine.

It is only when he reaches forward for a drink of water that you notice anything is wrong.

His right hand is missing its index finger: in its place is a web of scar tissue.

That he is here at all is a minor miracle - and a tribute to the skill of the battlefield doctors who saved his life.

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A technician finishes a high-tech prosthetic leg at Headley court.

Three years ago, 38-year-old Major Bradley was leading his infantry company on foot through "Red Route", the road that runs through the centre of Basra in Southern Iraq.

He was on a mission to rescue a squad of British soldiers cut off without support when suddenly his team came under vicious attack.

Major Bradley was hit by two rocket-propelled grenades.

Shrapnel tore though his hand, shoulder and chest.

The blast took out the lens of his left eye, shredding the cornea. He was evacuated to a field hospital where surgeons opened his chest to remove the jagged metal.

He was given a five-per-cent chance of survival.

Headley Court where 180 servicemen and women are currently patients

But his condition stabilised and he is now at Headley Court rehabilitation centre near Ashtead, Surrey - the focus of a £5million public appeal being launched tomorrow by the head of the Army, General Sir Richard Dannatt.

The Help for Heroes appeal is to build a full-size rehabilitation pool and re-equip the antiquated gym at the centre, where currently 180 servicemen and women are being treated as in-patients.

At present, severely disabled service personnel, many of them amputees, endure a two-andahalf-hour round trip to a public pool for vital cardiovascular exercise.

Once there, they must swim alongside the paying public in what is often a very private form of therapy.

For men like Major Bradley, the initiative is crucial as he still aims to return to his regiment.

But although he is finally regaining function on his right side thanks to intensive training and physiotherapy, he still does not know if he will make it back.

Sir Richard has already fired the first shots in the battle at home for wounded soldiers rebuilding their lives after Iraq and Afghanistan.

Last week, he called for greater public support for the servicemen and women, urging the public to organise Americanstyle homecoming parades and for more donations to service charities.

He also criticised the Ashtead residents who objected to plans to turn a local house into overnight accommodation for the families of patients at Headley Court.

The centre, a mock Jacobean manor house set in 85 acres of landscaped grounds, has 200 highly skilled staff from all three armed services.

It has gained a worldwide reputation for returning soldiers to their units quickly and efficiently.

"Headley Court has been amazing," said Major Bradley.

"After I was wounded, I spent two months at Selly Oak in Birmingham, a civilian hospital. Coming here was the first time I was back within a military situation.

"Arriving to start treatment was an important day. It was like going back to work. By nature, soldiers are fairly institutionalised and Headley Court returns us to an environment we understand.

"It also puts everything into perspective. When I first went to the gym, I realised there were many people worse off than me. It's inspiring."

The Mail on Sunday was invited to visit the centre last week. New facilities have already been added to cope with the increased demand due to Iraq and Afghanistan.

These include a new 30-bed ward and an in-house prosthetics studio that enables patients to receive the most advanced false limbs available, quicker than they would in any NHS hospital.

But there are limits to the funds available. Without donations from the public, the plan to build a muchneeded full-size pool could take years to realise.

Help for Heroes appeal chairman Bryn Parry said: "We need to raise enough to give our wounded servicemen and women the best facilities that money can buy, as quickly as they deserve.

"The public is needed because the Government does not have a limitless supply of cash."

In the prosthetic workshop, an engineer puts finishing touches to a carbon-fibre leg.

The case, which envelops the patient's thigh, is camouflage green rather than the normal flesh-coloured.

"When we make the final leg the guy can chose what design he wants," said Chief Technician Stu Tilbury.

"Some go for this, others their football colours or the British flag."

The equipment is highly advanced.

Two electronic limbs for a double amputee lie on the counter being charged. "They are controlled by Bluetooth remote control and have a range of settings such as walking and cycling," said Tilbury.

"The men never want the fleshcoloured cosmetic covering to hide the technology of their prosthetic limbs. In soldier-speak they are a "'Gucci' bit of kit - and they want to show them off."

Major Bradley summed up the feelings of his comrades at Headley Court by saying: "Returning soldiers don't want to be treated like heroes.

"They just want a bit of appreciation for the sacrifices being made. And there are huge sacrifices being made every day by very brave young men, younger and braver than me."

To make a donation, visit www.helpforheroes.org.uk. You can also email info@helpforheroes. org.uk, or call 0845 673 1760.

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