The owner of the Bodyzone gym in Bracknell Leisure Centre has claimed the council “ruined my business” after it closed last month.

The gym closed its doors seemingly for good on Sunday, April 30, after owners say a “policy change” shortened its lease and doubled its rent. Sid Bourne, who has run the gym for some 24 years, says the council “strung me along for two years”.

“They ruined my business,” he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service. “I can’t understand why the council would offer an agreement and not keep it. Where’s the trust in the council? We’re supposed to trust them aren’t we?”

Bracknell Forest Council, which owns the leisure centre, first said it would be “happy” to grant Mr Bourne an extension on his lease up until 2028, in an email dated March 11, 2020.

But Mr Bourne says that in 2021 a “policy change” meant he would have to negotiate a new lease with its leisure contractors, private firm Everyone Active.

After complaining to the council he was eventually offered two new options. The first would have only secured his place at the leisure centre until August this year.

The second granted him an extension until April 2025—but he said this would mean his rent would almost double. The owner claimed it would begin at £35,000 plus VAT and business rates for the first year and rise to £65,000 for the following two.

Mr Bourne said: “My customers that were promised an extension would have had to double their membership money.

“This wasn’t the agreement they offered me in 2020. They strung me along for two years and then they came back with these two options.”

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Mr Bourne says that Bodyzone’s closure means Bracknell has lost a unique service to the community—and one that’s not in direct competition with Everyone Active’s fitness and cardio gym.

“I am the only heavy weights gym in Bracknell itself. I was the only one different from everyone else,” he said.

“It was more of a community gym. I had people coming with mental health, stress and anxiety. I deal with kids in schools doing work experience.

“My gym isn’t just a place for training. It’s where people can come to unwind. When they come I my door they forget everything outside.

“I used to get stick and racial insults. So I understand how things can affect people. The gym was a place people could come and feel normal. Now it’s gone.”

Bracknell Forest Council has previously confirmed that it offered Mr Bourne two options following his complaint, and that he did not accept them. They added in a statement: “Due to ongoing legal discussions, the council is unable to comment beyond statements previously issued.”