Meet Our Team

An 12 Strong Team Of Outstanding Physiotherapists

Clinic Directors

GillCannon

Gill Davy (Nee Cannon)

Clinic Director

Find Out More About Gill

Gill qualified from Leeds Metropolitan University in 1992 and after working in the NHS she returned to Australia to continue her post-graduate education.

By completing the Australian Sports Diploma and studying with the Australian Pilates Institute Gill was fortunate enough to secure a job at North Sydney Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Centre with several of Australia’s leading surgeons whilst also travelling with Australian sports teams in Rugby, AFL, Softball, Tennis and Netball. At the Sydney Olympics, working with Australian Gymnastics, Gill met the British Team and on returning to the UK has worked with them ever since.

In 2001, Gill and Rachel formed Physio Action starting with their first clinic at the David Lloyd Club in Leeds. Having worked in Private Practice for over 16 years, Gill specialises in Sports Medicine and particularly in the management of adolescent and gymnastic injuries.

She has represented Australia and Great Britain as Physiotherapist at Commonwealth, European, World and Olympic level and was the National Lead Physiotherapist for British Gymnastics and trampolining.

Gill has worked with many other National teams too including UK Athletics and British Orienteering.

As the personal physio to one of our Olympians, she understands the challenges both physically and mentally that sport presents to our athletes and transfers these skills into the daily running of her patient caseload.

Throughout her life as a physio, Gill has worked hard to attain a good reputation for quality treatment. She considers herself very lucky to work at the top end of sport but always recalls that day-to-day work with patients who struggle with back/neck pain through inappropriate postures or daily repetitive loading can be just as rewarding, making small changes can make a huge difference to someone’s life.

Personally, she is a busy mum of three very active children who love what she does, apparently “It’s quite cool to have a mum who can fix it”!

Rachel Galley

Clinic Director

Find Out More About Rachel

Rachel has been qualified for over 20 years, spending the first 5 years working in the NHS learning and gaining invaluable experience on general medical conditions and musculo-skeletal medicine.

Rachel set up a private sports Injury clinic combining her knowledge as a Physio and ex-County and Regional tennis player, to specialise in the treatment & management of racket sports injuries.

In 2001, Rachel joined forces with business partner and friend Gill Davy (Nee Cannon) opening the first of their Physio Action clinics in the Leeds David Lloyd Leisure Club before expanding into Harrogate in 2002 and then Ilkley in 2014.

Since qualifying, Rachel has worked in Rugby Union with all levels and age groups in Yorkshire and the North of England. She is currently the physio for Wharfedale Rugby Union Club and the Senior Yorkshire team.

In 2007, Rachel was appointed by the RFU as team Physiotherapist for the England Counties team and currently provides medical cover for their summer tour travelling to USA/Canada, Japan/Korea, Uganda/Kenya as well as Belgium, Spain, Romania and Georgia with the Senior England Counties team.

In 2015, Rachel was one of the Physiotherapists for the referees at the Rugby World Cup and is a physiotherapy advisor for a leading Independent school in Yorkshire. ​

She is a valuable member of the teaching faculty on the England Rugby Pre-Hospital Immediate Care in Sport course and in 2019 she started providing medical cover for the England Girls U18 TDG squad.

Rachel’s aim is to return to the play competitive tennis again in the future and currently spends any spare time in the Yorkshire Dales and acting as a taxi for her 10-year-old twins sporting fixtures!

Physiotherapists

Jane Aspin

Senior MSK Physiotherapist and Spinal Specialist

Find Out More About Jane

Jane is one of our senior Musculo-skeletal physiotherapists, with a particular expertise in treating back and neck pain.

She qualified in 2004 and started her career at York Hospital. In 2007, Jane moved into private practice which is when her interest in spinal problems began.

Jane is a valuable member of our team, joining Physio Action in 2009.She has developed great working relationships with some of the region’s leading spinal specialists. She continues to progress her knowledge through self-study, attends regular spinal courses by clinical and surgical observation allowing her to perfect the assessment and treatment of all spinal conditions.

Jane takes time and gives individual care to her patients whether they have simple aches and pains or the more complex longstanding problems. Listening to each patient’s story and carrying out a detailed examination Jane is able to identifythe underlying cause allowing a treatment plan to be developed and built upon helping both conservative and surgical management approaches.

Using a combination of hands on treatment and with specific exercises prescription, Jane help to guide her patients to a successful outcome. 

When further investigations are indicated Jane can also refer for MRI scans, Ultrasound scans and X-rays using her links with MSK Doctors and spinal and orthopaedic surgeons if specialist opinion is required.

Away from work Jane is a keen horse rider. She enjoys riding her horses Wescoe Showman and Latina everyday as well as competing in Dressage and Show jumping competitions which helps keep her fit!

Gemma James

Senior MSK Physiotherapist and JEMS specialist 

Find Out More About Gemma

Gemma qualified from Leeds Metropolitan university in 2006 starting her career in trauma and orthopaedics at the Leeds General Infirmary. She moved to Harrogate hospital for her second job where she had a split role specialising in musculoskeletal and Hand physiotherapy .Here She gained  vast experience in gym rehab, spinal, orthopaedics, amputee rehab and complex GP referrals as well as in the hand service treating a variety of hand injuries and working closely with the Hand Surgeons.

She has spent the last few years working in private practice seeing a range of different injuries and conditions during which she has been able to complete her JEMS training which has led to a specialist interest in functional biomechanics and performance.

Gemma completed her JEMS practitioner exam in 2019 which gives her specialist knowledge in assessing and treating people with sport performance issues helping them to develop more efficiency and and reach a higher level of sport or recreational performance.

Gemma also uses her JEMS expertise alongside her physiotherapy knowledge to treat people with longstanding or persistent pain. She has a personal interest in performance issues in both horse riding and skiing and uses her skills running performance clinics for these sports. She is an Appi Pilates instructor and likes to mix this with JEMS movement principles in classes for long standing postural improvement and movement efficiency.

In her spare time, she enjoys an active life with her young family, horse riding for fun these days rather than competing, rock climbing, running, and in winter skiing as much as possible!

Charlie Steggles

Senior Physiotherapist

Find Out More About Charlie

Charlie qualified in 2003 and began her career at the West Suffolk Hospital before moving to Yorkshire in 2006. Here she was able to specialise in musculoskeletal physiotherapy working in the NHS, private practice and with the Huddersfield Giants Rugby League Academy Teams.

In 2008, Charlie supported the England Women’s Rugby League Team in the preparation for and throughout the World Cup in Australia and subsequent test matches at home and abroad through to 2010.

In 2010, she joined Leeds Carnegie as the Head of Academy Physiotherapy before becoming a Physio with the Great Britain Boxing Team in 2013.

Gaining valuable experience working for the English Institute of Sport supporting the athletes at home and international training camps and competitions Charlie has represented Great Britain at European and World Championship level, the Glasgow Commonwealth Games and the Rio Olympics in 2016.

Always looking for a new challenge, Charlie worked at a Premiership Football Club as Head Academy Physio overseeing the management of athletes from 9 years up to the Under 23’s Team.

Throughout her career Charlie has worked extensively with elite athletes. She has a keen interest in the younger, developing athlete, injury prevention and rehabilitation and in 2015 she completed an MSc in Sports Injury Rehabilitation at Salford University.

As well as working with the Physio Action Team she also works as part of the multi-disciplinary team supporting the GB Wheelchair Basketball Team helping athletes prepare for training and competitions.

In her spare time, she enjoys being outdoors riding her horse and walking, enjoying the beautiful Yorkshire countryside.

Hannah Bottomley

Senior Physiotherapist

Find Out More About Hannah

Since qualifying from Oxford Brookes University in 2004 Hannah has worked predominantly in the private sector in various locations across the country and in Australia. She has a particular interest in Sports Physiotherapy and has worked with many sporting clubs including Rugby, Football, Cricket, Running, Handball, Diving and Tennis. She was also privileged enough to have been chosen as a volunteer Gamesmaker Physiotherapist at the London 2012 Olympic Games and the 2015 Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

Throughout her career Hannah has completed many post graduate qualifications and courses including acupuncture in order to enhance her physio skills. Her approach to patient treatment is very much hands on and she particularly enjoys treating lower back, lower limb and shoulder injuries.

In her spare time Hannah is a budding weekend warrior enjoying cycling, water sports, skiing and travelling.

Stephen Kirk

Senior Physiotherapist

Find Out More About Stephen

Stephen Kirk qualified as a physiotherapist from the University of Liverpool in 2000. Since then he has worked extensively in the NHS in a variety of roles. He was the Lower Limb Lead at Harrogate Hospital for 8 years where he worked closely with orthopaedics and radiology on the management of complex conditions. In this role he developed a special interest in hip conditions which led him to become a guest lecturer at the University of Bradford. For the last 2 years Stephen has been working in GP surgeries in Leeds and Harrogate as a FCP. This is a new and exciting role for physiotherapist’s which allows them be at the forefront of managing patients care.

Stephen has completed several post graduate masters modules including injection therapy, lifestyle medicine and rehabilitation. He really enjoys building a rapport with all of his patients and helping them to achieve their goals, no matter what they are.

Stephen has also worked extensively in private practice and elite sport. Recently he worked for one season with a top European Tour player. This allowed him to travel to several golf tournaments overseeing all aspects of the patient’s fitness and wellbeing. Outside of work, Stephen himself is an avid golfer and has been a member of Moortown Golf Club for 25 years. He also enjoys the great outdoors and doing activities such as paddle boarding, kayaking and cycling.

Su Leeming

Senior MSK Physiotherapist and Shoulder Specialist

Find Out More About Su

Su qualified as a physiotherapist from the University of Bradford in 2012. Since then she has worked within the NHS and in the private sector. Su works as the Advanced Upper Limb Physiotherapist at Harrogate District Hospital and is also working as a First Contact Physiotherapist in GP practices within the region. Both these roles require a close working relationship with the orthopaedic, radiology and physiotherapy teams to help manage complex injuries/conditions.

Su gained a PG (Cert) in Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy from the University of Bradford in 2016 and has also completed Injection Therapy training. She has also attended many courses focussing on upper and lower limb injuries and rehab throughout her career. This enables her to keep up to date with the most current evidence and help guide her patients accordingly.

Outside of work, Su loves the great outdoors and will be found mountain biking, running, walking or having a cup of tea in her campervan whilst planning the next adventure.

Allen Brown

Senior MSK Physiotherapist

Find Out More About Allen

Allen completed a BSc (Hons) Sports Rehabilitation degree in 2005 at the University of Salford. Wanting to progress his knowledge Allen went on to do an MSc (pre-reg) physiotherapy degree at Leeds Met University, qualifying in 2008.

Initially working in the NHS at the Bradford Teaching Hospital Trust he completed a variety of rotations whilst working as the First Team Physiotherapist for the Leeds United Ladies Football Team.

In 2012,he moved to the private sector and joined Nuffield Health Leeds Hospital, initially as a Senior Outpatients Physiotherapist, and then as an Advanced Level 

Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist.

He re- joined the NHS two years ago as a First Contact Practitioner working throughout the Harrogate area. This role requires a close working relationship with the local radiology, orthopaedic, GP and physiotherapy teams which puts him one step ahead when needing to refer on, or liaise  with, other professionals in order to progress his clients’ recovery He has completed a number of post graduate courses some of which include Injection Therapy and Acupuncture.

In his spare time, like much of our team, he enjoys the great outdoors, including cycling and walking.

Gabriella Aston

Physiotherapist

Find Out More About Gabriella

Gabriella is compassionate, caring, and ambitious towards helping clients reach their highest level of performance with the least amount of discomfort.

She will work hard to get to the root of a problem and provide quality treatment to reduce pain, provide a good rehabilitation programme and look for ways to reduce the incidence of injury in the future.

Gabriella loves to have fun, whether that is playing sport, being with friends or even walking her dogs. She believes in not letting pain spoil your fun! If you are finding yourself not participating in activities that you enjoy because of musculoskeletal pain, then she is your perfect physio to visit.

Gabriella has a background of multiple sports, including hockey, tennis, and skiing, therefore enjoys guiding clients through a detail and personalised rehab programme.

Gabriella has worked alongside athletes following rotator cuff repairs, arthroscopies, ACL repairs and joint replacements. She understands that this can be physically, mentally, and emotionally challenging on an athlete of any age. There are a lot of ups and downs to the rehab process – you go from being a star athlete to sitting on the side lines for as long periods of time. However, Gabriella works hard to make your rehabilitation process as smooth as possible, so you can get back to enjoying your active lifestyle and for athletes to get them back to their preferred level.

Gabriella works across the clinics at David Lloyd Moortown, Chapel Allerton Tennis Club and Ilkley Tennis Club.

Ana Warne

Senior MSK Physiotherapist and Spinal Specialist

Find Out More About Ana

Ana is an advanced spinal specialist MSK physiotherapist working for Physio Action and in the NHS.

This includes treatment and management of complex spinal presentations and closely working with Radiology Consultants on appropriate spinal imaging as well as liaising with the wider neurosurgical pain management teams .

She also has a keen interest in the management of upper limb and lowers limb injuries. Having completed post graduate training in Musculoskeletal injection therapy she uses this to manage shoulder and knee problems alongside exercise-based treatments.

Personally, she enjoys a variety of hobbies like most Physiotherapists exercising in the gym, cycling and walking her dog.

Jenny Frosztega

Senior MSK Physiotherapist specialising in Children’s Physiotherapy

Find Out More About Jenny

Qualifying in 2007, Jenny has worked in both the NHS and private sector concentrating her efforts in Orthopaedics but with a specific interest in Paediatrics / Children’s musculoskeletal conditions.

Jenny is a registered ‘Kids Back to Sport ‘Practitioner and one of only a few physios to offer this expertise.

Having recently returned to Yorkshire after completing her MSc in Advanced Physiotherapy we are thrilled to welcome her to our Team to develop our Children’s Physiotherapy service at Physio Action.

Jenny’s experience and specialisation in Paediatric Physiotherapy allows her to assess each child’s unique needs and create tailored treatment plans that prioritise their growth and development. With an emphasis on engaging exercises and activities, she champions a hands-on approach that not only aids in their recovery but also helps them build strength, mobility, and confidence.

Jenny is also a qualified APPI Mat work Pilates Instructor and on a slight tangent has also been trained to complete Level 1 and 2 Bike Fit assessments. As an enthusiastic cyclist she chose to understand more about bike set ups and the complications that cyclists encounter, and this combined with her MSK knowledge provides another string to her bow.

Outside of work Jenny loves running, cycling and open water swimming, alongside volunteering at major sporting events such as London 2020 Paralympics, U18 Scottish Hockey, Ride London, and Ultra X.

Women’s Health

Jaime Sawiuk

Senior Physiotherapist

Find Out More About Jaime

Jaime qualified from Brunel University in 2008, since then she has pursued many opportunities to learn and gain experience both in the NHS, Sport and Women’s Health.

Jaime was an elite British gymnast, coach and has represented Yorkshire in when she was competing. She draws on this experience to aid her treatment methods and rehabilitation plans for all those she treats. In addition, Jaime has an APPI Pilates qualification using the relevant exercises within her physiotherapy sessions to aid recovery.

Before having children, Jaime worked with various Rugby teams including Hunslet Hawks, Leodensians and Bramley Buffaloes on and off the pitch. She gained significant experience dealing with acute injuries and rehabilitating to a return to high level. She can also help treat and manage chronic conditions to allow an otherwise ‘injured’ player to get through the season safely.

Jaime has a special interest in Women’s Health, treating pre and post-natal ladies with conditions such as pelvic girdle pain (PGP), urinary incontinence, pelvic floor dysfunctions, tummy gaps and prolapse.

After having her “own Birth story” she went in pursuit of answers for problems that she personally experienced but not just for herself but so that she can help as many women as possible with their “own birth story”.

She is aware that even the perfect birth can still give you issues and believes every woman should be offered a Mummy MOT. It’s an absolute passion of hers to get the message out there. Break the taboo and talk about pelvic health.

No one should leak when they laugh, and everyone should be able to jump on that trampoline!

Sports & Soft Tissue Massage Therapists

Matt Hancocks

Sports and Rehabilitation Therapist

Find Out More About Matt

Matt is our Sports and Rehabilitation Therapist, and although he comes in as the latest member of our Team we have worked with him extensively in the past where he has been brilliant in providing and utilising the principles of sport and exercise science in musculoskeletal management, exercise-based rehabilitation, and sports specific fitness.

His goal is always to support clients to improve their physical strength, mobility, coordination and flexibility, to make a smooth return to their recreational and competitive sport as swiftly as possible. He is also an experienced Sports and Soft Tissue Massage Therapist providing appropriate soft tissue interventions in a sport & exercise context.

Matt bridges the gap between end stage rehab and return to sport with confidence and often uses a combined soft tissue and myofascial release approach with his rehab. He has some great ideas on pre exercise activation / preparation and post exs recovery strategies to enhance the carry over between treatment sessions but also to help his clients self-manage their recovery in the best possible way.

Key Skills :

To Utilise sports and exercise principles to optimise performance, preparation and injury prevention programmes

To Rehabilitate and if appropriate, refer on for specialist advice with our Physio Team or Extensive Network of Orthopaedic Consultants

To Plan and implement appropriate rehabilitation and return to training/work programmes

We are delighted Matt has joined the Team, and he will be dividing his time between our Physio Action Clinics at David Lloyd Leisure Club, Chapel Allerton Tennis Club and Harrogate Sports and Fitness Club.

Reception Team

Lauren Collins

Receptionist

Find Out More About Lauren

Lauren joined the reception team in 2013 having graduated the year before in Sports and Exercise Therapy. Throughout her studies she gained placement experience in the NHS, private practice, and with professional Rugby League.

She decided to focus on clerical work and brought her skills from past experiences in reception, admin and customer service to support the smooth running of reception here at Physio Action.  She became our reception manager in 2019 and manages the other members of the reception team. Lauren has adapted systems and procedures to ensure the administration side of the business is as efficient as it can be in order to provide the best patient experience.

Lauren is committed to delivering a first-class service to patients with a welcoming smile. She can help you with any queries that you may have.

In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with family, walking, watching rugby league and also attends mixed martial arts classes.

Charlie Abrams-Hughes

Receptionist

Find Out More About Charlie

Charlie graduated from Staffordshire University in 1994 with a degree in Film, Photography and Animation, then went on to do her Masters in Film in 1995. After working for a major bank in the Marketing and Design dept for 4 years she left to have her first child in 2001, while on Maternity leave she moved to Paris.

After living abroad and around the UK she is now settled in Leeds. She had her second child in 2008 and started her own Photography Studio business based at home and loves coming out to work part time at Physio Action to meet interesting people all day.

Emma Shadbolt

Receptionist

 

Find Out More About Emma

Emma has recently joined Physio Action as part of the reception team. She has over 30 years business experience in the Financial Services industry in both internal and external customer facing roles.

She has spent most of her career to date in learning and development roles, supporting and developing people through their careers.

Emma is looking forward to supporting patients with their queries and ensuring the service they receive is second to none.

Happy Clients

Contact Us

Physio Clinic in Leeds
Physio Clinic in Harrogate
Physio Clinic in Ilkley
Physio Clinic in Harrogate