North Yorkshire rehab centre for jockeys given go-ahead (From York Press)
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North Yorkshire rehab centre for jockeys given go-ahead
10:21am Wednesday 13th March 2013 in News
By Mark Stead, Political Reporter
A £3.5 MILLION centre in Malton which will provide treatment for injured jockeys has been given the go-ahead.
Members of Ryedale District Council's planning committee last night approved proposals by the Injured Jockeys Fund (IJF) for the rehabilitation base next to Malton and Norton Rugby Club, its second in the UK and its first in the north. The land will be bought from the Fitzwilliam Trust.
It will be named Jack Berry House, after the IJF's vice-president who spearheaded fundraising for the project, and will be a "centre for excellence" for riders' fitness and rehabilitation. It will treat current and former jockeys and also provide facilities for other local sportsmen and women, with a gym, hydrotherapy pool, treatment rooms and respite accommodation being included within the complex.
Construction on the site is expected to start in October and the centre is scheduled to open in autumn 2014, the year which marks the IJF’s 50th anniversary. Mr Berry said: “I’ve always wanted better facilities for jockeys and for this to be happening in Malton is a dream come true for me.”
John Fairley, the IJF’s Malton-based trustee, said: “We’ve worked on this in Malton for some time and it’s tremendously exciting that northern jockeys will have a unique facility to help them recover from and prevent injuries.” The IJF's chairman, Brough Scott, said: "The great thing about Oaksey House in Lambourn [the IJF's current rehab centre] was that both the local and the wider community got behind it, and I am confident the same thing can happen with Jack Berry House."
Jockey Graham Lee said: "I know myself how much awareness of fitness has changed in the last ten years and Jack Berry House will hugely help northern jockeys with their fitness, recovery and rehab - we can't wait for it to open."
The next steps in the project will be completing architectural designs and appointing a project team as well as tendering for the work on the scheme. The architect for the project is Nick Silcock of Townscape Architects, based in Harrogate.
