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Welcome to the latest edition of the Wellington Health & Fitness Club newsletter and possibly one of the only pieces of reading material that does not mention the words Brexit or general election, although we just have! Firstly, please accept our apologises as by the time you are reading this some of the projects are well underway. Unfortunately, this newsletter has been put on hold several times in recent weeks due to the changing plans for the three main projects that are currently underway; car park, pool and IT. In addition to this there have been issues with our Mail Chimp account which has added a further delay. Sandra BreenThere are several significant changes that we need to inform you of. Many of you are aware that Sandra Breen our Membership Secretary will be leaving us on Friday 20th December after thirty- one years of service having joined the Club in May 1988. As a result of this the Club will be implementing several changes as to how memberships etc. are processed, but first we would like to outline what thank you celebrations we have lined up for Sandra. There is a card for members to sign behind Reception so please ask any of the team. On Tuesday 10th December at 2pm we will be hosting drinks and cakes for members that would like to attend. Please let Shan know so that we can gauge numbers. On Friday 13th we have a staff lunch and on Sandra’s last day we will be saying farewell from 2pm onwards. Membership Administration ChangesIn terms of what operational changes we will be making; all membership enquiries will be dealt with by the Reception Team and the Direct Debit management will be managed by the Accounts Team. Several of the processes will be automated such as annual renewals and membership updates will now be sent out by email. The first automated renewal email for annual membership will be sent on 4th December. Whilst over Sandra’s period of notice we have looked to cover all aspects of her role, what we will never be able to replace is the personal relationships that Sandra has with many members. There will be a few teething problems, and we will not know everything that Sandra knows, and these new systems although tested will take a little time to bed in so please bear with us. Group Exercise Class BookingsA couple of other changes to note with regards to group exercise class bookings. The biggest point of consternation along with the lack of car parking is the difficulty to getting on to classes. Many comments point to, too many members being allowed to join the Club whereas we are still operating a strict waiting list protocol. Membership numbers have been static for the past 16 months. The group exercise programme has grown significantly in size over the past few years and has effectively doubled in the last six to seven years. We now offer 95 group exercise class per week along with 33 Qube classes per week. The issues revolve around the popularity of classes and class instructors, and members booking multiple classes at the same time then deciding which ones to attend plus adding names to several waiting lists and then not removing themselves once offered class space or not wishing to attend at all. Online booking via the Club App is exceptionally popular but as with several IT based solutions comes with some limitations and will not in these cases remove names from waiting lists automatically and neither will it promote from the waiting list to fill a vacant space. In order to try and find a solution to these issues we will be introducing from Saturday 7th December two new systems: one is called ‘Over Lapping Bookings’ which will not permit members to book multiple classes and multiple waiting lists at the same time. The software will do a pre- set periodic sweeps across the data base and remove any members bookings that appear simultaneously at the same time and remove all, but the last booking made. It works on the premise that you cannot be in the same place in two different locations. This will free up spaces making them available to members to book. We have trialled it on several occasions manually and it has proved to be effective. The second piece of software is called ‘Waiting List Management’ which is a process that we can set up ourselves. What this system will do is identify classes where bookings have been cancelled creating vacancies on the class. The system will then periodically send out an email to everyone on the waiting list. It will then be a case of first come first served by clicking on the link on the email to book the vacant space. The email will be sent one per hour from 5am through to 8:30 am daily. We will only be operating this system for early morning classes. This is to avoid the Reception team coming in at 0630 to find 20 plus cancellations for the early morning classes and having to make those calls. The following list are the classes that will be using this ‘Waiting List Management’ system:
Car ParkingCar parking is the second biggest piece of feedback we receive. Several options have been reviewed including a one level multi story car park which eventually was too expensive to build and install. What is currently in progress is a levelling out of the bottom section of the members car park and reconfiguring the layout to create an additional 30 car parking bays, plus new signage will be installed. In addition to this the right hand overflow car park by the side of the swimming pool has been slightly extended and on the opposite site an additional 40 spaces have been created. Once the appropriate signage has been installed, we will be able to open this up. The initial plan was to complete the work in sections allowing limited access to the bottom car park. However, the early works have been very successful and the revised plan to close off the entire bottom car park from Saturday 30th November through to Friday 6th December. This will enable the team to level off this area, tarmac and mark out the bays.
December Pool ClosureAs many of you are aware the pool is required to be closed From Monday 2nd December through to Sunday 5th January as essential maintenance is required to be carried out on the pool side surround flooring. It is unavoidable to delay this work any longer as the issues will only become more pressing. The Club acknowledges the inconvenience to swimmers and to the class members who attend aqua fit and swimming lessons. The work however cannot be carried out whilst the pool remains in operation. In addition to the flooring there will be some decoration work to be completed during this period. It has been arranged for members to attend Carnival Pool in Wokingham to swim free of charge. If any aqua classes are attended then these will need to be paid for at Carnival Pool, and the receipt kept, and we will then reimburse you. We will cross reference all details as on previous occasions as several irregularities were found! The management at Carnival will ask their reception team to take names, date and time of swim and then forward on to us. With regards to aqua please note the information below:
We appreciate that information has been very slow in coming out about what we have been able to offer. It is worth noting that both Carnival Pool and Bracknell Leisure Centre have recently changed operators and Camberley Arena is closed for refurbishment, so the process has taken more time than in the past. December Main Hall ClosureThe Main Hall will be closed from Friday 13th December through to Sunday 22nd December for a ‘scrub and seal’ along with remarking. Five Live Friday Music NightsOver the past three months we have hosted 3 evenings of live music which have proved to be very popular. The last in the 2019 series is schedule for Friday 13th December. As with all the previous events there is an early happy hour drinks special! There is no need to book, just turn up and have fun. The 2020 events schedule will be available in the next few weeks. Real Tennis ClubA message from Dan Jones our Real Tennis Head Coach. If you haven’t yet ventured across to the Club then please do where both Dan and Adam will be delighted to meet and talk to you about Real Tennis and all its uniqueness. Please contact Danny Jones dpj@wellingtonfitness.co.uk or 07471905661 to sign up for a free 40 minute taster session or to find out more about the exciting sport of Real tennis. See you on court very soon. Net Promoter ScoreThis is a topic that is highlighted in most newsletters. The NPS you receive from us is our biggest source of member of feedback and we really appreciate and value it. It is not anonymous but that should not hold you back from providing both positive and constructive feedback. We make every effort to make sure that we respond to your comments and to help where we can. This email can often find its way into your Junk mail and be surrounded by many other companies asking for the same feedback. It’s not the score that is important to us, but your comments and observations. If known, then we can act. Contact E Mail AddressesIn recent months we have introduced several new contact email addresses to help direct any enquiries and comments to the appropriate team quicker. Details are on our web site and can be found at www.wellingtonfitness.co.uk/contact-wellington/ For general enquiries and comments – hello@wellingtonfitness.co.uk Other Communication RoutesIn addition to emails we share Club information and news via our Facebook page https:// www.facebook.com/Wellingtonfitnessclub/ our Twitter account @wellington_HF, our Instagram account @_wellingtonfitness_ and via the Club App which can be downloaded on both Apple and Android App stores. Children In NeedA massive thank you and well done to everyone who took part in the 5k run the other week in less than ideal conditions. The final total of money raised was a brilliant £ 711.83. An outstanding effort by those that organised and those that took part. C.R.O.W. (Crowthorne Reduce Our Waste) AwardThe award is a plastic free status as part of a ‘plastic free community’ set up by a surfers against sewage initiative. Web site details http://c-r-o-w.org.uk/ One of their key points being Refuse, reuse, reduce, recycle. The items the Club has removed and replaced are:
Hello’s, Goodbyes & CongratulationsIn the past few months we have said goodbye to; Debbie Bullock in the gym who went on to pastures new at Wokingham Borough Council, Charlie Walker – Hebborn who moved to set up her own PT business so congratulations to Charlie and to Mike Mckie who has had a change of career and is working for Virgin Media. On the flip side it is hello to Catherine Baker Ingrida Velickaite, Nadia Swan, Thomas Holder and Callum Johnson who have joined the gym team. Helen Cohen, Jen Rich, Richard Welch, and Gareth Pengelly who have recently joined as Group Exercise Instructors. Congratulations to Ellie Goswell who has secured the position of Studio Coordinator and to Lewis Banks for being promoted to Duty Manager to replace Mike. Lastly, congratulations to Jack Holden and Amy Lomax both valuable team members who obtained Firsts in their respective degrees. Ian Davis Commercial Manager 1/12/19 |
