Andrew Smith

 

Senior therapist Andrew Smith initially worked in the mining industry as a mechanical engineer for 20 years before leaving the industry after an accident, which damaged his right shoulder rotator cuff and back.

Fortunately after being told by the Hospital he would have a frozen shoulder forever, he met a physio who said he could help. Once his shoulder was cured, Andrew went on to train with the physio who was setting up his own school at the Nottingham City Hospital Physiotherapy Training Centre. First learning Body Massage and then Sports Massage, and finally Sports Therapy.

He then went on to train in Aromatherapy and Lymphatic drainage massage in Bristol and Reflexology in Nottingham. He became a Reiki Master in 1994 in both Osui and Tibetan Reiki training in Derbyshire and Yorkshire. He also gained level 1 teachers qualification with the Hydrotherm Company also holding their basic, advanced and pregnancy massage qualifications. He is also the instructor for the whole of Ireland for the Harley Body Wrap Company.

He is a qualified Colonic Hydrotherapist. Before and after qualifing as a Colonic Hydrotherapist he worked with Shirley Jay Lambert. (At that time a Colonic hydrotherapist of 17 years experience who later went on to co found the Guild of Colonic Hydrotherapists) 2 days per week in her clinic Greenways in Sheffield. Once qualified having his own Colonic practice at the clinic. He worked in this clinic for 3 years.

Having worked with the youth football teams that his sons played for as a first aider, he gained the UK Football Associations Basic and Intermediate qualifications in the Treatment and Management of sports injuries. Later he studied with the FA at their medical headquarters Lilleshall, gaining the FA full qualification in the Treatment and Management of injuries. He went from youth football to standing in at Notts County Football Club (the oldest league football club in the world) as first team physio under the managership of Sam Alardyce until the new physio could take up his post. However as a result of the calibre of his work, he was asked to remain at the club, which he did for a further 4 years, working with the first team and the youth academy on a part time basis until he decide to leave at the end of the 2001 season. He also worked as for 6 seasons on Sundays as team Physio to Arnold Town Women’s Football Club, a Northern Women’s Premiership side.

From 1992 he owned his own Clinic in Nottingham based at the Freislands Leisure centre, which he kept for 13 years. During which time he was therapist to the former Commonwealth sprint cycling champion & Olympic coach for all three years of his time as World Masters Cycling champion. Several members of the British Speed Skating team including Audrey Mason the Scottish women’s Champion were also clients.

In 1995 he was asked to work at the Central TV studios, (which became Carlton studios) in Nottingham for one Friday afternoon. He remained working on a part time basis at the studios both in Nottingham & Birmingham until the Nottingham studios closed in June 2005. During this time he worked not only with the studio employees but also on many shows, working with the artists in the studio and out on location. He worked on the last series of the original Gladiators as a sport masseur and Family Fortunes with Les Dennis. He also worked on several series of Star For a Night with Jane McDonald and Barbara Windsor, 2 seasons of the Sky Masters football tournament as physio for Nottingham Forest & Aston Villa. and many others shows. He also worked on 3 feature films.

In 2003 Andrew started working as a therapist at Walmer College for 2 days per week, flying over from England to hold a very busy clinic where he worked as a multi skilled therapist. In 2005 he moved over full time to Ireland and added the role of ITEC Sports Massage Tutor.

He left Walmer College after 5 happy years in 2008 to start and work the Willows - a purpose built clinic with his partner Irene Scarff. He now has added his new therapy of live and dry blood testing after training in England with a former Guys Hospital research Doctor.