LORD Joffe returned to Swindon's Thamesdown Hydrotherapy Pool to declare its new extension open.

Lord Joffe, who opened the pool in 1979 as Allied Dunbar vice-chairman Joel Joffe, was given a tour of the new facilities.

The extension has been funded by a £214,000 lottery grant. The size of the changing area has doubled, the car park has been extended and a new overhead harness system to help carry people from wheelchairs into the water has been installed.

The pool is used by thousands of people with varying disabilities who benefit from the weightless exercise. It is also used by two special schools.

Today, fund-raiser Patrick Broderick hopes to raise £1,000 for the pool by throwing himself into a sponsored swim. Patrick, 35, is no stranger to good causes, having previously taken part in the North Wilts Rotary Club race to raise funds for the Prospect Hospice in Wroughton.

The funds he raises will go towards the pool's £80,000 annual running costs.