Seaham gym owner appeals for new venue to avoid closure

Andrea Tweedy-Dixon said she is urgently searching for new premises to house the successful businesses and their hundreds of members after initial plans to move into a former hall fell through. 

If a new site is not found, then the gym could be forced to close. 

Memberships at the gym have grown to around 300 in the six years since the Covid pandemic, when demand for classes grew. 

The gym owner said: “We currently support hundreds of members of all ages and backgrounds, many of whom rely on the gym not just physically, but mentally and socially too. 

“We are a safe space for women. We run classes seven days a week, transformation programmes, support groups, community events, and we’ve built this business completely from the ground up as a local family-run business.”

Ms Tweedy-Dixon said closing the gym would be “devastating” for the family business, its members and the community it has built over the last few years. 

Seaham-based ATD Fitness had submitted a proposal to convert the Kingdom Hall, on Strangford Road, into a new base for the business.

Durham County Council approved the plans, which included no alterations to the exterior of the building or wider site.

However, the scheme will no longer progress. 

It means Ms Tweedy-Dixon is back to the drawing board and continuing to search for sites. To replace its current base at the Seaham Grange Industrial Estate. 

She added: “Whilst we were in discussions and hopeful it may have worked out, the building has since been sold elsewhere before the change of usage was approved.

“Time is now becoming a real concern for us.”

“If we are unable to secure a new premises before Christmas, there is a real risk ATD may be forced to close.”

“ATD isn’t just a gym, it’s a huge community hub for so many people locally.”