Deflated! Health and Safety officials ban physiotherapists' favourite seats

Which is why staff at Bath University began using giant inflatable balls as office chairs.

The rubber Swiss balls, developed in the 1970s as an exercise aide, are a recognised method of strengthening the muscles that support the back.

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Top physiotherapist Sonya Crowe, who looks after the British beach volleyball team, was the first to bring hers to work. Other staff at the university's School of Health quickly followed.

But their health and safety initiative soon fell foul of health and safety officials.

They said staff could fall off the balls or the inflatables could roll around the office and hurt someone.

The physios were advised to go back to chairs.

But Miss Crowe, one of about half a dozen staff using the balls as chairs, has no intention of complying.

She insisted that any risk was minimal.

"I've never heard of anyone falling off one of the balls," she said.

The health benefits far outweigh any risks there may be.

"I've got a long-term hip injury and sitting in a normal chair leaves me in pain, whereas using a Swiss ball leaves me pain-free.

"People who suffer from backache and shoulder pain can really benefit from sitting on an exercise ball instead of a regular office chair. I'm certainly not going to stop using one."

She was backed by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, which said: "There's absolutely no risk with these things if they are used properly.

"It's common practice among physios and I don't think there can be any danger. The health and safety people need to remember that not all chairs have four legs."

The Swiss ball was developed to help alternative forms of exercise. Using it develops the inner, or core, muscles of the torso which can cut back pain.

Primary schools in Switzerland have been using the balls as chairs since 1995 to help pupils' posture and cut the risk of them suffering back problems later in life.

A spokesman for Bath University, which offers one of the UK's best degree courses in sport and exercise science, said health and safety officials were now thinking again.

He said: "The health and safety department advised us that the exercise balls don't fit in with the health and safety policy.

"They just don't feel people should be using them and asked them to stop.

"But they left the final decision up to the individuals concerned.

"Sonya Crowe is an experienced sports physiotherapist who believes that the Swiss balls are a good way to improve posture and back strain.

"The health and safety team are looking into whether the balls meet the university's guidelines on conventional chairs, to see if the trial can be allowed to become a permanent situation.

"We expect the result of this shortly."