AN injured footballer who was turned away from the town’s urgent care centre with a broken ankle because of a faulty X-ray machine, has criticised how he was forced to travel nearly 20 miles to the nearest A&E.

The Sunday football league player from North Ascot, had to attend rush to the Bracknell Urgent Care Centre at Brants Bridge at around 8am on Thursday after injuring himself in training the night before.

But after asking for an X-ray he was told the machine was being repaired as it was faulty and he had to drive to Wexham Park Hospital in Slough.

He said: “To send me all the way to A&E for a minor injury seems totally at odds with what the government has been preaching.

“We’re repeatedly being told we should only use A&E departments when it really is an emergency.

“I’m surprised there isn’t some sort of back-up plan in place. Why does a centre which serves a town of close to 80,000 only have one X-ray machine?”

A Trust spokesperson said: “Regrettably, last Tuesday, an unexpected problem arose with the X-ray machine.

“Engineers had the machine fully up and running on Thursday afternoon when it was reopened, following testing. “In the interim period, a mobile machine allowed the service to continue for routine non urgent x-rays. “Unfortunately, a small number patients had to be directed to another local facility.”