The Rotary Club of Solihull has kindly donated a pool table to the disabled veterans living at The Royal Star & Garter Home in Solihull.

The table has been warmly received by the residents, many of whom enjoy engaging in sports accessible from a wheelchair. Members of the Gentlemen’s Club at the Home were eager to use it at club gatherings but the game has proven popular with male and female residents alike.

The Rotary Club of Solihull also runs an annual Disabled Sports Day, which involves 60 participants and their carers. The Rotarians suggested that the pool table, which is designed to fold, could be loaned to the Disabled Sports Day each year and then returned to the residents of The Royal Star & Garter Homes, providing a neat solution to storage problems as well as entertainment for the veterans.

The Charity has a long tradition of sporting activities. In the late 1940s, Dr Ludwig Guttmann, consultant at Stoke Mandeville Hospital and at the old Star & Garter Home in Richmond, used pioneering techniques to get patients moving. Believing that sport contributed profoundly to the mental well-being of his patients, he introduced archery and billiards, which could be played from a wheelchair. His work led to the first recorded sports competition between disabled athletes, which was the forerunner to the Paralympic Games.

David Pond, Disabled Sports Organiser at the Rotary Club, commented: “We are delighted to present the pool table, which is a welcome addition to compliment the varied activities that The Royal Star & Garter Homes provides for its many residents, which helps with the general health and well-being of all concerned.”