The new area will open on January 25 but families wishing to book a 1 hour slot at the new facility will have to pay £7.50 per child over two years old, £3.75 for children under two and £5 for additional adults, with one adult admission free per child.
The new prices took many parents by surprise as previously the admission was £4.50 per child, and free for all adults.
A mother of two from Basingstoke, who did not wish to be named, said: “It seems like they are taking advantage of the fact that there isn’t much like it locally,
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Artist’s impression of the new soft play area (Image: Basingstoke Sports Centre)
“It doesn’t seem like good value at all, especially with the expensive parking cost in Festival Place.”
Other parents have expressed their surprise at the pricing in the comments of a Facebook post from Basingstoke Sports Centre encouraging families to book ahead of the opening.
At the time of writing, more than 370 comments have been made.
One person wrote: “Quite a steep increase in price after almost three months closed.
“A shame as we were regulars but personally, I feel almost doubling the price for the same duration just isn’t justified, I appreciate it’s been upgraded but still.”
The soft play facilities have been closed since October 20 and are due to reopen with a new café which will serve hot and cold refreshments with snacks.
Another parent said on Facebook: “That’s a huge increase considering they’ll get extra income from the café too.
“We used to go each week but this puts me off, £7.50 and £5 extra just for my wife to attend too is really high”
The new woodland-inspired soft play areas can accommodate up to 100 children aged up to 10 years old and will include ball pools, slides, interactive elements and dedicated areas for children under two.
Basingstoke Sports Centre is operated by GLL under the consumer-facing brand Better.
Paul Shearman, GLL Partnership Manager responded to the criticism: “As a charitable social enterprise, GLL is committed to providing affordable leisure services to all members of the community, including families with young children.
“We have spent £310,000 on the new soft play at Basingstoke Sports Centre and created a unique, state-of-the-art facility.
“The new soft play zone is more than double the size of the old, outdated facility it replaced and boasts an incredible array of interactive features, including obstacle courses, slides, rope bridges, light-up sensory zones, a virtual nature trail and a spider web maze.
“The pricing has been set to reflect this and offers extremely value for money for a family day out compared with other activities, such as the cinema, bowling, or meal out.”
The soft play will be open 9am-6pm Monday to Fridays and 8.30am-4.30pm on the weekends.
The Sports Centre are also offering children’s birthday parties at the new soft play area at £150 for 10 children or exclusive use of the play area for 75 minutes at £480 for up to 30 guests.
This article was written by Jasmine Kelly, News Associates