Teen fitness duo slam Doncaster Council's "unsafe" flagship The Dome gym with "rusty" equipment and leaky roof
Two teenage fitness fanatics from Doncaster have spoken out about “unsafe” and “unsanitary” conditions at the City of Doncaster Council’s “flagship” gym, The Dome.
Samuel, aged 17, and Peter, aged 16, pay £22-per-month to work out at the gym, and claim investment has been funnelled into swimming facilities.
Samuel, who has been training at The Dome for three years, said: “We’ve got 15-year-old squat racks that aren’t stable, leaking roofs… there’s lots of rips and loads of tape on the equipment.
“A lot of the dumbbells are rusty and they have been there since the gym started. It’s like doing half a job.”
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Peter added: “I remember one time I was training and a drop of water hit my head.”
The 16-year-old said he even felt he had to wash his hands after using a number of pieces of gym equipment due to them being “unsanitary”.
The pair say feedback requested by the Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust (DCLT), who operate The Dome on behalf of the council, fell on deaf ears, until they began speaking with the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) and sharing their experiences publicly.
Samuel described one incident with the gym’s two leg extension machines.
“One was damaged and it was put out of action and left there. Their other [machine] had an issue that it would slip,” he explained.
He said the issue was raised to staff, due to the potential risk of injury with the remaining machine, but heard from trainers that “they couldn’t have both out [of action] at one time”.
Keeping fit and visiting the gym has become an important part of the teenagers’ routines, but the condition of The Dome gym, advertised as DCLT’s flagship site, has made them question their membership.
Peter said: “It’s a place for me to not only socialise, but improve myself mentally and physically.
“That’s really important because everyone has their own issues in life and with the gym it allows you to get out some of that pent up emotion. It doesn’t make things better, but it doesn’t make things worse. It’s just a really useful outlet for us.”
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Samuel added: “I picked up the gym three years ago and I’ve just kept going. I’m unfortunate to have The Dome as the gym closest to me because it’s really expensive.
“[Training] gives me confidence and it improves my health.
“We’re not asking for a full refurbishment. All we’re asking for is a good standard and equipment that isn’t falling apart.”
As under-18s, both Samuel and Peter fork out £22 every month for their gym membership. The adult gym membership at The Dome is £30 monthly.
Kelly Nicoll, head of health and safety and environment at DCLT, said: “We are aware of a complaint from three of our youth members regarding the equipment in our gym. We are liaising with them directly as we investigate their complaint and will respond following our standard procedures.
“We can confirm that our gym equipment meets health and safety requirements and that our venues have and continue to benefit from a rolling programme of investment to replace the existing equipment.”
The Dome’s Lagoons, the site’s swimming pools complex, is currently undergoing a multi-million pound refurbishment which was approved by Mayor Ros Jones’ cabinet in February 2024.
The refurbishment, which includes improvements to the “building fabric” has now had around £16million of investment approved by the cabinet, but none of the funding decisions have included the gym specifically.