Much-loved soft play to abruptly close doors as owner shares heartbreaking cost of living message
A MUCH-loved soft play area is set to close as the owner issues a heartbreaking message to its customers.
Tommy-Lee’s soft play in Whitehaven, Cumbria will shut for good at the end of the year.
The owner issued a statement on Facebook expressing “sadness” at the closure and thanked customers for their support.
Owner Kelly-Anne Kirkbride wrote: “Sadly Tommy-lees will be closing down at the end of the year.
“It’s a very sad time but with the cost of living and rent and electricity and all other stuff, it’s not possible for us to stay open.
“I’d like to THANK YOU all for your support we’ve met some really lovely people.
“We will still be honouring all parties that are booked in sadly there are no empty premises to accommodate us at this time.”
Customers of the soft play took to the comments to offer their support and express their sadness at the news.
One said: “That’s really sad, best of luck for your future Kelly”.
Another added: “This is such a sad post to read as we only discovered Tommy’s soft play recently”.
While a third commented: “So sorry to hear this Kelly, you’ve worked so hard to build up Tommy-Lees and make it successful.”
Tommy-Lee’s soft play opened in the town’s Queen Street last July.
The exact date the centre will shut its doors is not yet confirmed.
Just last week another kids’ soft play closed down leaving parents “absolutely gutted”.
Kidz About in Swindon revealed that they were having to move out after not getting a new lease for their premises in the town’s Spectrum Building.
The news led to an outpouring of sadness and support on Facebook with regulars calling it “the only decent soft play” in the area.
Soft play areas were one of the places that were forced to stay closed when lockdown eased in July 2020.
As workers went back to offices and were able to start using public transport again, venues including soft play and nightclubs remained closed.
Many venues have not recovered from lockdown and rising rents and energy bills have made it impossible for some to survive.
As many parents rely on soft play to keep their kids occupied and burn off some energy during the school holidays, term time is obviously much quieter.
Many rely on party bookings and events to keep afloat but with many families feeling the pinch this is no longer a reliable source of income.
Households struggling to pay their bills are having to cut back on things they enjoy.
Leisure activities and treats for the kids have started to take a back seat as some households can just about manage to meet their basic outgoings each month.
This is also being felt on the high street, where shops are closing at an alarming rate.
Even big high street names such as Wilko have been unable to weather the storm.
The popular discounter closed its last remaining shops at the weekend after tumbling into administration in August.