University of Birmingham Sport & Fitness

Very poor value for money and extremely disappointing management. The membership fee is very high (£58 per month), yet the facilities are quite limited. During the summer, parts of the facilities were closed for maintenance for around two months, which significantly affected normal use. No compensation or fee reduction was offered. Staff attitude is another major issue. Interactions felt cold, dismissive and unhelpful, especially when raising reasonable questions about membership or cancellation. The swimming pool is frequently occupied by large groups of children attending lessons, which makes it extremely difficult for adult members to use the pool properly. This is not clearly communicated in advance. Before joining, the service was presented very positively during enquiries, and the website advertises a wide range of “free” classes and activities. In reality, despite paying £58 per month, many of these classes are not available to book or are extremely restricted. This feels misleading once you have already committed and paid. Despite not using the facilities for over six months, I was not allowed to cancel my membership without paying an additional month’s fee. There was no flexibility at all, even in cases of non-use or relocation. Overall, the experience feels highly transactional and unfair. I would strongly encourage others to be cautious, read the terms carefully, and think twice before joining.

Very poor value for money and extremely disappointing management. The membership fee is very high (£58 per month), yet the facilities are quite limited. During the summer, parts of the facilities were closed for maintenance for around two months, which significantly affected normal use. No compensation or fee reduction was offered. Staff attitude is another major issue. Interactions felt cold, dismissive and unhelpful, especially when raising reasonable questions about membership or cancellation. The swimming pool is frequently occupied by large groups of children attending lessons, which makes it extremely difficult for adult members to use the pool properly. This is not clearly communicated in advance. Before joining, the service was presented very positively during enquiries, and the website advertises a wide range of “free” classes and activities. In reality, despite paying £58 per month, many of these classes are not available to book or are extremely restricted. This feels misleading once you have already committed and paid. Despite not using the facilities for over six months, I was not allowed to cancel my membership without paying an additional month’s fee. There was no flexibility at all, even in cases of non-use or relocation. Overall, the experience feels highly transactional and unfair. I would strongly encourage others to be cautious, read the terms carefully, and think twice before joining.

My daughter has swimming lessons with Ian and he is brilliant 🤩 such a great teacher (kind, patient, funny) She has come on loads since moving to his class :) …