Pensioners’ pressure – anger over 800% hike in sports and fitness centre fees

PENSIONERS have vowed to keep the pressure on Dublin City Council, in an effort to overturn new fees, which they say will prevent some elderly members accessing the Sports and Fitness facility at Ballyfermot leisure centre.

A protest took place on Wednesday, September 1, outside the Sports & Fitness Ballyfermot leisure centre, and pensioners are working on a petition amid plans for another protest on September 15.

George Hynes (71), a Ballyfermot resident and a member of the centre, said OAPs were paying €20 a year but this has now changed to €15 a month.

“One of the women went in a couple of weeks ago and was told this – there was no consultation, nobody knew anything about it,” he said.

“I know it doesn’t sound like a lot, but it is a lot to people who are living on the old age pension.”

Brid Smith TD, was at the protest and called the move a “ridiculous hike in price pensioners are expected to pay – 800 per cent increase”.

Deputy Smith fully backs the pensioners’ efforts to overturn the price hike and believes 1,000 signatures on the petition would represent a good start.

Dublin City Council told The Echo that the annual charge of €20 for pensioners “is not considered a membership, it is an administration/registration fee”.

“This fee covered swimming at off-peak hours but no access to swimming or other fitness classes,” said the local authority.

Closed for most of the last 18 months, Sports & Fitness Ballyfermot re-opened in June 2021 operating under strict new government public health guidelines.

Although the facility was closed to the public, the city council said regular maintenance was still required and income was reduced significantly.

As a result, the city council said they introduced a “pay-as-you-go charge” to use the service, and a “modest charge for people over 60 years is €2 per visit.”

Dublin City Council said: “A number of customers using pay-as-you-go rate €2 per visit asked if there was another payment option available, as they were paying on average €8 per week or €32/month (four visits a week), taking this into account [the council] offered a €15 per month membership. This gave the customers a pre-paid subscription membership that they can use as often as they like during the month.

“Another option for customers is to re-activate their previous pre-paid membership, but all members must adhere to the current Covid-19 terms and conditions.

“Some of our pensioners availed of this as they bought memberships for €200 to take part in the fitness classes.

“Again, if they were to go to two/three classes a week it would be cheaper than paying per fitness class. Currently fitness classes are €5.”

Mr Hynes blasted the council response as nonsense.

“When Covid hit, all our memberships were frozen. We had €2 for each visit but there was no option. We only got word via rumours from staff, but couldn’t do anything until the first person got caught, the woman who went in two weeks ago.

“When your 12-month membership expires you will be hit with the increase.

“They are talking about some of us doing Pilates and fitness classes, but half of the OAPs can’t walk. I’m fairly active myself, but who wants Pilates when you’re an OAP – six or seven of the group are over the age of 80, most are over 70.

“We’ve all been going there for years, had Christmas parties. Before Covid we would go upstairs early in the morning for as long as we liked and then to the swimming pool.

“The idea when the centre started up was to get people over 60 into health and fitness and keep them out of hospital.”

The OAPs plan to protest outside the centre again on September 15 and present their petition to the manager of the facility.