Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre
Neurological rehabilitation service in Bristol
At Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre, we work to enable patients to achieve clearly defined and agreed goals. We treat patients from the age of 16 with an acquired or traumatic brain injury. We’re committed to ensuring our patients feel safe, happy and empowered.
Capacity up to 52
Neuro-rehab
All genders
Bristol
Frenchay provides brain injury care, support and rehabilitation.
We specialise in the treatment of patients with complex physical and cognitive impairments, challenging behaviours and neuropsychiatric disorders resulting from a brain injury. We offer comprehensive assessment, rehabilitation and therapy. Some patients at have been detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 (amended 2007) or are here under a Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) order.
There are two buildings on our Frenchay site: Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Unit (BIRU) South and Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Unit (BIRU) North. Our consultant-led inter-disciplinary team work across both buildings and work seamlessly together to ensure every team member is working towards the same practical, realistic goals and that all therapies are focused on the areas that will enable patients to achieve those clearly defined and agreed goals.
We are experienced at managing people with PEGS and patients in low states of arousal who require a SMART (Sensory Modality Assessment and Rehabilitation Technique) assessment.
Level 1 regional specialist rehabilitation
Our regional service is for patients with complex and severe impairments following a brain injury. They require highly specialist intensive care from a highly trained inter-disciplinary team and access to treatment and facilities that are unlikely to be available in their local area.
Patients are usually in the early stages of recovery from their brain injury and are usually admitted from an acute hospital once they are medically stable.
Level 2 specialist rehabilitation
This service is suitable for patients who have either completed a period of Level 1 rehabilitation and have ongoing therapy needs, or who have been assessed as having less complex rehabilitation and care requirements.
In either situation, patients have the potential to improve further to either enable a return home or to a community setting with reduced future care needs. We offer two options to reflect the different needs of our patients:
- Higher intensity for patients requiring a short period of intensive therapy
- Lower intensity for patients who would benefit from therapy spread out over a longer timeframe, for example, due to finding multiple therapy sessions fatiguing
We support those with, but are not limited to:
- Acquired brain injury
- Anoxic brain injury
- Brain tumour
- Complex stroke
- Traumatic brain injury
- Inflammatory and infective conditions
- Subarachnoid haemorrhage
If you are a referring NHS partner looking to access a level 1 placement for a patient, please refer using the NHS Badgernet platform and select Frenchay Brain Injury Centre.
For level 2 placements please refer by emailing referrals@activecaregroup.co.uk.
Commitment to quality
At Frenchay Brain Injury rehabilitation Centre we have aligned and agreed our strategic goals to define what we want our organisation to achieve. This means we have also aligned them with the five domains of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection standards to ensure we provide the very best care possible to all our patients.
52 bedrooms
Frenchay is proud to be one of the countries largest neurological rehabilitation specialists with fifty-two rooms across two buildings.
5 large day rooms
Our day rooms are always full of vibrant activities with patients interacting in these wholesome community settings.
2 gymnasiums
We have two gymnasiums where all patients are encouraged to support their physical rehabilitation, keep themselves active and socialise with others.
Therapy kitchen
A specially designed therapy kitchen allows users to learn new skills that will serve them long after they’ve left our care.
Private gardens
Our private gardens allow patients to enjoy the outdoors at their own leisure in a safe and warm environment.
Hydrotherapy pool
A state-of-the-art therapy pool allows our patients to focus on re-gaining cognitive abilities that may have been lost.
Take a look around
Based in Bristol, Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre provides specialist post acute rehabilitation, as well as the management of long term neurological conditions.
Meet the team
Suzanne Moss
With over 15 years of dedicated service within the Neurosciences Division at North Bristol NHS Trust and 4 years in Active Care Group, Suzanne has built a career defined by clinical excellence, compassionate leadership, and a relentless drive to improve patient outcomes. Over the past eight years, she has held key management roles, where she has led multidisciplinary teams, overseen complex service developments, and championed innovation in neurological care.
Suzanne holds a Master’s degree in Advanced Practice and has further advanced her leadership credentials by completing the Senior Leader Programme at Level 7. Her academic achievements complement her hands-on experience, equipping her with the strategic insight and operational expertise needed to navigate the evolving challenges of modern healthcare.
Deeply committed to patient care, Suzanne is passionate about driving services forward, ensuring that every individual receives the highest standard of support, dignity, and clinical excellence. Her leadership is marked by a collaborative ethos, a focus on continuous improvement, and a vision for a more responsive, inclusive, and forward-thinking healthcare system.
Claire Bassett
Claire is the lead physiotherapist at Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre. After qualifying with her physiotherapy degree in 2007, and working in different settings, Claire quickly realised her passion was in neuro rehab and has subsequently worked in that area for the last 15 years. Claire’s dedication for this patient group developed through her love of creative problem solving, team working and being a key part of a patient’s rehab journey.
Claire is a supportive and proactive leader. She engages her team to strive for the best possible outcomes, promoting a holistic and patient centred approach.
Over the last 10 years working at Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre, Claire has developed highly specialist skills in neurological rehabilitation including complex neurological assessment, excellent clinical reasoning skills based on current evidence base, spasticity management, splinting/ serial casting, complex postural management, spinal cord injury management, hydrotherapy with neurological patients, kinesio taping for neurological patients, trache management and weaning, complex discharge planning, and working with patients in disorders of consciousness.
Claire is a very experienced moving and handling trainer and is one of the therapy representatives in the health and safety meetings.
Jo Heath
Jo qualified as an occupational therapist in 2002. She started working at Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre in 2004 and very quickly found her passion for working with this patient group.
During her 20 years at Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre, Jo has developed highly specialist knowledge and skills in neurorehabilitation and has continuously challenged herself to ensure she is a well-rounded holistic practitioner. She is a SMART accredited Prolonged Disorders of Consciousness (PDOC) assessor, a positive behaviour support coach, and is skilled in complex posture, seating, splinting, cognitive rehabilitation, upper limb rehabilitation, spasticity management, cognitive rehabilitation and visual rehabilitation. Jo has been instrumental in developing the discharge processes within the service and has created links with stakeholders from across the region to support this process.
Jo has contributed to the significant expansion and development of the specialist rehabilitation services delivered to the patients at Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre. In her role as lead occupational therapist and more recently as Head of Therapies, Jo constantly strives to achieve a gold standard service and has instilled her passion for complex rehabilitation within the team. Jo has a special interest in healthcare leadership and innovation, which has led her to undertake postgraduate studies in this area. She has enjoyed sharing her knowledge and skills in this area with the therapy team to develop the next generation of healthcare leaders.
Rebecca Whitehead
Becky started in January 2022 as Deputy Matron at Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre. Her career started as a healthcare assistant at Frenchay in 2008, while completing her degree in adult nursing. Once she completed her degree, she went straight to work on an acute ward specialising in neurosurgery, looking after neuro high dependency patients. Becky continued to develop from staff nurse to senior staff nurse in 2013. In 2016, Becky was successfully recruited into a stroke nurse practitioner role, followed by a spinal specialist nurse which enhanced her skills and knowledge in these specialist areas. Becky’s heart was always with neurosurgical and neurosciences patients, which led her back to ward nursing.
Katie Hanlon
After leaving school Katie worked for an insurance company. After deciding on her career path, Katie qualified as a registered adult nurse in 2009 having studied at UWE Bristol: University of the West of England.
Katie worked in neurosurgery as soon as she qualified, first at the old Frenchay Hospital site, before moving to the new site at Southmead Hospital. After working for some years as a senior staff nurse, during the covid-19 pandemic Katie undertook an opportunity to run the acute neurosurgical admissions ward as senior sister. After three and a half years, Katie joined Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre as Deputy Matron.
Emma Wright
Emma joined in August 2022 as Matron at Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre. Her career started as a nursing auxiliary in a Cottage Hospital. She qualified with her degree in nursing in 1999 and went to work on a ward specialising in neurosurgery. Neuro is where her passion lies, and she continued to develop from staff nurse, senior sister and clinical matron. She brings her experience and knowledge to Frenchay, forging new relationships, bringing along and sharing her NHS experience.
Mattia Monastra
Mattia is a Consultant Clinical Neuropsychologist with over 10 years of experience in adult neuropsychological assessment, rehabilitation, and therapy. He qualified as a Clinical Psychologist in 2018 and was admitted to the Specialist Register of Clinical Neuropsychology in 2023. Mattia is adaptable, passionate, and person-centred in his approach. He draws on a range of models, including Existential Therapy, Metacognitive Therapy and Trauma Focussed Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, to support adjustment and coping with the effects of neurological and health conditions.
Rebecca Withers
Rebecca began her working career in as a Medical Secretary in the X-ray Department at Frenchay Hospital. Over the last 38 years she has remained in healthcare and worked in several hospital settings; Southmead Hospital, Bristol Children’s Hospital, The Bristol Royal Infirmary, The Great Western Hospital in Swindon, then back to the new PFI Hospital at Southmead before her current role as Business Support Manager at Frenchy Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre.
In 2001 Becca moved from administration roles to Project Management roles in Outpatients and IM&T before moving into Management roles in Stroke and Neurology at Southmead Hospital. In 2016 Becca joined Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre on a secondment from Southmead Hospital as the Business Support Manager.
Dr Mohamed Sakel
Dr Mohamed Sakel (MRCP (UK), FRCP (UK) is the Medical Director and Consultant Physician of a Level 1 Neurorehabilitation service at Frenchay. He was the founding director of a specialist neuro-rehabilitation service at East Kent University Hospital. Dr Mohamed led clinical services and international research in stroke, brain injury, multiple sclerosis, spinal injury, leadership, service developments, botox service and charity, leading to 95 international publications. He was awarded an NHS Top 70 Leaders award in 2018.
As the Chairman of Kent brain injury forum, Dr Mohamed led the brain injury service development initiative launched at the House of Commons in 2018 with support from the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on brain injury. Dr Mohamed also led research with Robotics (multi-national and investigator-initiated within the UK).
He has conducted several clinical trials to explore a brain-computer interface to relieve neuropathic pain, control a robotic arm, and communicate via thought-controlled word software.
Dr Mohamed was elected member of the Medical Academic Staff Committee of the British Medical Association for two terms in 2012 & 2013. He was Director of R&D of a University hospital from 2008-2012, along with a Board Member of the EKHUFT University Hospital and the Regional NIHR board CLRN for Kent Sussex & Surrey.
Download our brochure
Our goal is to care for people and help them lead rich, rewarding and meaningful lives, however that looks for them. Download our brochure to learn more about the services we provide at Active Care Group.
Headway approved
We are extremely proud to be accredited as an approved provider of specialist brain injury care by the Headway Brain Injury Association.
Our address
Briggs Road, Frenchay,
Winterbourne,
Bristol,
BS16 2UU
Contact number
Tel: 0117 956 2697
Referrals
referrals@activecaregroup.co.uk
Tel: 01732 779353
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Latest news from Frenchay
Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre achieves outstanding rating in Headway accreditation
Our occupational therapy team at Frenchay on the difficulties following brain injury
