New patient assessments: Thursday and Friday mornings are open this month.
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One clinician · unhurried visits · no double-booking
Spinal & movement care
Common Craft is a single-clinician chiropractic practice for stubborn backs, stiff necks and jaws that will not settle. Long first assessments, adjustments only where they earn their place, and loaded movement work so the relief holds between visits.
History, movement screen, hands-on testing and your first treatment in one sitting.
Reviewed at visit three. If it is not shifting, we change the approach or refer on.
Soft waistband, no belt. Gowns are available if you would rather not change.
What people come in with
If yours is on this list, you will know roughly what the first visit looks like before you book. If it is not, write it in the notes field and we will tell you honestly whether this is the right room for it.
01
Usually a mix of joint stiffness and guarded hip muscles. Expect mobilisation of the segments that are genuinely restricted, then hinge and loading practice so the first twenty minutes of the day stop being a negotiation.
Most common02
Rarely about posture alone. We test rotation and side-bend under load, treat the thoracic spine as much as the neck, and set two short resets you can do between meetings without a mat or a gym.
03
The priority is working out what is actually referring — nerve, joint or muscle. Treatment is gentler than people expect, and we track the furthest point down the leg the pain reaches to tell whether it is retreating.
04
Jaw, upper neck and breathing pattern get assessed together. Work is slow and mostly soft tissue, with a short nightly routine. We coordinate with your dentist if a splint is already in play.
05
Side-lying support, adjustable table sections and no end-range twisting. Sessions focus on pelvic comfort, rib and breathing mechanics, and returning to lifting a toddler without bracing everything.
06
Less treatment, more graded loading. We map the first eight weeks on paper, agree what soreness is acceptable, and keep hands-on work for the sessions where it will actually let you train.
Your first visit
Nothing happens without being explained first. You can stop any part of the examination or treatment at any point and we will carry on with the rest.
How it started, what makes it worse, what you have already tried, and what you want back. Medication and past imaging are useful — bring what you have.
Screening through the spine, hips and shoulders, plus orthopaedic and neurological tests where the story calls for them.
A plain explanation of what we think is going on, what we are not sure about, and the two or three ways forward — including doing less.
Treatment on the day if it is appropriate, then two or three exercises written out for you, not emailed as a twenty-item list.
Care approach
There is no single method here. This is the working shortlist, and the honest version of how each one feels, so you can say no to something before you are on the table.
| Technique | Best suited to | What it feels like |
|---|---|---|
| Specific joint adjustment | Clearly restricted spinal or rib segments that test the same way twice. | A quick, shallow push. Often an audible release, which is gas moving in the joint and not a measure of success. |
| Graded mobilisation | Irritable backs, older joints, and anyone who would rather not be adjusted at all. | Slow, rhythmic rocking at the edge of comfort. Nothing sudden, and easy to talk through. |
| Drop-table and instrument work | Pelvis and upper neck, pregnancy, and acute pain where positioning is limited. | A short mechanical tap or a small section of the table dropping a centimetre under you. |
| Soft tissue and dry needling | Guarded glutes, calves, jaw and shoulder tissue that keeps pulling the joint back into position. | Firm, sometimes sharp pressure. Needling is a brief ache or twitch; it is always optional and always discussed first. |
| Loaded rehabilitation | Anything that has come back more than twice, and every return-to-sport plan. | Work. Bands, a kettlebell or your own body weight, with clear rules on acceptable next-day soreness. |
| Breathing and load management | Rib and jaw tension, headaches, and pain that flares with stressful weeks. | Quiet, undramatic practice lying or seated, usually the last five minutes of a session. |
Inside the treatment room
Dr Marit Halloway
Chiropractor, clinic owner
Follow-ups run thirty minutes, which is long enough to retest what we changed last time before touching anything new. If a visit is not needed, it gets cancelled rather than filled.
Treatment is chosen from findings on the day. Adjustments are skipped entirely for plenty of patients, and that is a normal outcome rather than a compromise.
You leave with two or three things to practise, written on paper with the number of reps and the specific day you should notice a difference by.
If the pattern looks medical, surgical or better suited to another clinician, you get told at the first visit and we help you work out where to go next.
Hours & access
Assessment slots sit in the morning blocks, follow-ups in the afternoons. Times shown are the last appointment start, not the closing time.
Questions before booking
No. You can book a first assessment directly. If your insurer or employer scheme requires a referral for reimbursement, check with them first, and tell us in the notes so the paperwork is ready on the day.
Usually not. Imaging changes the plan for a small minority of back and neck complaints, and normal findings on a scan are extremely common in people with no pain at all. If your examination shows something that genuinely needs imaging, we will explain why and write to your doctor.
Only if it is indicated, and only after the risks and alternatives have been described and you have agreed. Many neck complaints are treated with mobilisation, soft tissue work and loading instead, with results that hold just as well.
Yes. Positioning uses side-lying support and an adjustable table, techniques are low-force, and end-range twisting is avoided throughout. Postpartum visits usually start with rib and pelvic mechanics before any loading work.
Mild soreness for a day, similar to after unfamiliar exercise, is common after the first treatment. It should settle on its own. Pain that is sharper than when you arrived, or any new numbness, means you should contact the clinic rather than wait for the next visit.
Most plans run three to six visits, spaced further apart as things improve. There is a review at visit three: if the problem has not moved, we change the approach or refer on. There are no packages to buy up front and no open-ended maintenance schedules.
You are told at the first visit, not three appointments in. We explain what we found, write to your doctor if that is useful, and point you toward the clinician or service that fits better.
Each person needs their own assessment, because history and examination take the full time. You are very welcome to book two consecutive slots, and to stay in the room for each other's visits.
Request an assessment
Send the short version and we will reply with two or three times that fit, plus an honest note on whether this clinic is the right first stop for your complaint.