In 1996, a major new development took place with the opening of a second rehabilitation 
centre in Auchterarder, Perthshire. Castlebrae was purchased from private owners for £630,000 in 1994.
The building had previously been used as a private house. It was built by a boot manufacturer in 1887 and its previous owner was a Bishop, using what is now the dining room, as his personal chapel. Work to alter and extend the building began the following year at a total cost of more than £3 million.
Virtual Tours
See our facilities at Casltebrae through our 360 degree virtual tours:
You can also get a feel for the Centre by watching our short promotional film, a link to this can be found at the bottom of this page.
Capacity
Today, Castlebrae can accommodate and treat up to a maximum of 67 patients over a two week period (the general length of stay for a Serving Officer). Accommodation can range from single/double or twin bedrooms plus a cottage enabling families to stay for those people who would otherwise not be able to attend due to child care responsibilities. Please see our user guide for more information about family cottages.
For those requiring treatment on the Physiotherapy Programme, 54 patients can be admitted over a two week period. For Officers attending on the Psychological Wellbeing Programme, a maximum of 14 patients can be admitted to the Centre.
Recent Changes
June 2017 - After considerable fundraising, Castlebrae is delighted to have finally raised the funds to purchase and install a new Alter-G treadmill, a fantastic piece of rehab kit, already proving very popular with patients.
The Alter-G at Castlebrae was funded by the generosity of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Deputy Ruler of Dubai, who is a supporter of the charity and very kindly donated £40,000 towards the purchase. Through the efforts of the Patients’ Social Committees and Officers who have attended Castlebrae for treatment, the remaining funds of £2,500 have been raised. The overall effect of the Alter-G is to significantly reduce rehab times and aid our ability to get Officers fit again after injury. A recent patient made use of the anti-gravity treadmill during their visit to the centre, finding it to be particularly useful in their rehab due to having a weight-bearing injury. The unique unweighting NASA technology enabled the patient to get moving a lot sooner, with reduced weight bearing on lower extremity injuries, resulting in less pain and impact.
In June 2015 The Police Treatment Centre, Castlebrae in Auchterarder, Perthshire began work on a long awaited extension and redevelopment of its rehabilitation facilities. The centre had for many years been struggling to cope at times with the number of officers attending for treatment as previous increases in the centre’s residential capacity had only put more pressure on the capacity to treat the patients. Plans were therefore drawn up to expand and improve the fitness facilities and an ambitious fundraising campaign was launched.
On 18th April 2016 the new facilities were opened for use by patients attending for treatment.
The centre now benefits from a much larger 15m x 7m treatment pool PLUS a hydrotherapy pool, something Castlebrae did not have prior to the redevelopment. There is now a new large sports hall in which many of the various classes can take place, a purpose built spin bike studio and the rehabilitation gym has nearly doubled in size.
“With all new facilities up and running, I feel that PTC Castlebrae is an excellent establishment providing first class treatment and education on specific conditions…” Paul Marshall – Scotland.
The new facilities now ensure that there are no restrictions on class sizes, either in the pool or in the sports hall, so officers can attend as many classes as they wish. There is also the added benefit of the hydrotherapy pool as well as more space in the gym and the new spin bike studio.
The £2.5m investment in the charity has insured that we remain at the forefront in the provision of treatment, physical and psychological, of injured and ill police officers both during their career and into retirement.
Useful Links
B&B - Rooms are available each weekend, at the highly competitive rate from £120 for a double room or from £100 for a single room for Friday & Saturday nights. For further information about our B&B weekends, click here.
View our short promotional film showing our new facilities below: