Everything you want to know before booking, answered directly.
No. You can self-refer directly to LPAW without a GP referral for most services — physiotherapy, osteopathy, sports therapy, shockwave, dry needling, massage, and pelvic health. Simply call 020 8983 3218 or book online.
If you are using private health insurance, some insurers require a GP referral as a condition of coverage — this is an insurer requirement, not ours. Check your policy before booking if you are using insurance.
Call us on 020 8983 3218 and speak to our reception team. They will ask you a few brief questions about your symptoms and direct you to the most appropriate clinician. Alternatively, browse our Services pages — each one describes what that service treats and who it is for. If you are still unsure, your first appointment can start as a general physiotherapy assessment and your clinician will determine the most appropriate pathway from there.
If you are in pain, have symptoms affecting your daily life, or simply want to understand what is going on in your body, your concern is valid enough to book an appointment. Our clinicians regularly see patients who have been waiting too long before seeking help. Early assessment is almost always better than delayed assessment.
Yes. LPAW has specialist paediatric physiotherapists — Katy Edebol (17+ years, including Band 7 at Great Ormond Street). We treat babies through to teenagers for a wide range of conditions including developmental delay, torticollis, cerebral palsy, growing pains, and sports injuries. See Babies & Children.
Your clinician will give you an honest estimate at the end of your first appointment. This varies by condition:
We do not give deliberately vague estimates or encourage indefinite attendance. You will be told clearly what to expect.
Yes — where appropriate and where no contraindications are present, treatment begins in the first session. You will not leave having only talked. The first appointment is longer than a follow-up to allow time for both thorough assessment and initial treatment.
Yes. Manual therapy — joint mobilisation, soft tissue work, manipulation, neural mobilisation, and mobilisation with movement — is a core component of physiotherapy at LPAW. Our clinicians do not rely on exercise prescription alone. The right combination of manual therapy and exercise consistently produces better outcomes than either alone.
Yes. If you have been recommended a specific clinician, or if you have a preference based on our Team page, let us know when booking and we will accommodate where possible based on availability.
We aim to maintain continuity of care — booking you with the same clinician for follow-up appointments wherever scheduling allows. If your clinician is unavailable, any session with a different LPAW clinician will be properly handed over.
Yes. We see patients who have had limited success elsewhere regularly. Bring any previous reports, scans, or notes from other clinicians — they provide useful context. A fresh assessment may identify factors that were not addressed previously.
The pool is at our Bow flagship clinic: 46–52 Fairfield Road, Bow, London E3 2QA. It is not available at our Stratford site.
36°C — consistently maintained at this temperature. This is warmer than most leisure pools (28–30°C) and most hospital hydrotherapy pools (33–34°C). The warmth is clinically deliberate — it maximises vasodilation, reduces muscle spasm, and significantly improves comfort for patients with chronic pain and fibromyalgia.
No. Hydrotherapy sessions involve therapeutic exercises in standing or supported positions. You do not need to swim.
The pool is available for:
It is not a public leisure facility.
Once your wound has healed (typically 4–6 weeks post-surgery) and your surgical team has cleared pool use. We will liaise with your surgical team on the appropriate timing. See Hip & Knee Replacements and Hydrotherapy.
Yes. Paediatric hydrotherapy sessions are conducted by our specialist paediatric physiotherapists with appropriate supervision. See Babies & Children.
The Med-X Spinal Gym is a range of medical-grade rehabilitation machines from the US, including the Med-X Lower Lumbar Extension — a device that isolates the lumbar extensor muscles using pelvic fixation in a way no standard gym equipment can replicate. It is used for chronic back and neck pain rehabilitation and has a robust published evidence base. See Med-X Spinal Gym.
No. Standard back extension machines allow pelvic movement, which means the hip extensors compensate and the lumbar muscles are not effectively isolated. The Med-X fixes the pelvis completely, ensuring the lumbar extensors — the muscles that atrophy in chronic back pain — must do the work. This isolation is the entire point of the machine and cannot be replicated with standard equipment.
An initial clinical assessment with an LPAW physiotherapist is required before using the Med-X. This establishes your baseline and ensures the programme is safe and appropriate. After assessment, you can access the gym within a treatment programme or via a Flex membership.
The Med-X Spinal Gym is at our Bow clinic only.
Call 020 8983 3218, email admin@lpawclinic.com, or use our online booking form on the Contact page. Our phone lines are staffed Monday to Friday during clinic hours.
Bow & Stratford – 8am to 8pm everyday
Reception and Phone Hours
We ask for at least 24 hours’ notice for cancellations or rescheduling. Late cancellations or no-shows are charged at the full self-pay price, including for insurance appointments.
We understand genuine emergencies – please contact us as early as possible, if this is the case.
For most services and clinicians, we can offer appointments within a few days. For specific clinicians in high demand (Arjun, our paediatric specialists), there may be a slightly longer wait. Call us to check current availability.
Prices vary by service, session length, and whether it is an initial or follow-up appointment. See our Prices page for current rates, or call us on 020 8983 3218.
46–52 Fairfield Road, Bow, London E3 2QA. Bow Church DLR station is a 2-minute walk. Street parking is available on surrounding roads.
Inside The Gym Group Stratford, 6 Victory Parade, Fortunes Walk, London E20 1JF. Stratford International DLR is approximately a 5-minute walk. You do not need a Gym Group membership to attend LPAW at this location.
The entrance is on the Fortunes Walk side not Celebration Avenue.
No. LPAW at Stratford East Village is open to all patients regardless of Gym Group membership.
The Bow clinic has the full range of LPAW facilities, including the hydrotherapy pool, Med-X Spinal Gym, and 4 treatment rooms. The Stratford clinic offers a convenient option for patients based in Stratford, West Ham, and the surrounding area. If your treatment plan is likely to involve the pool or Med-X, Bow is the appropriate site.
Yes. We work with all major UK private health insurers including Bupa, AXA Health, Cigna, Vitality, Aviva, and others. See our Insurance page for the full list and step-by-step guidance on using your insurance at LPAW.
Most insurers require a pre-authorisation number before your first appointment. Obtain this from your insurer before booking — call the member services number on your insurance card. Provide us with the pre-authorisation number when booking.
Coverage for shockwave therapy (RSWT) varies by insurer and policy. Many insurers cover it when it is part of a physiotherapy treatment plan. Call your insurer and ask specifically about shockwave (ESWT/RSWT) before attending.
What We Do
