Thingamajigz indoor soft play centre in Poulton announces 'indefinite' closure

Thingamajigz indoor play centre, in Furness Drive on Poulton Business Park, had not reopened since it closed in November last year due to the Covid lockdown regulations in England.

Bosses initially said they planned to reopen the play area in July, a month after lockdown restrictions were lifted, in order to open under "normal conditions."

But due to "the increasing number of coronavirus infections particularly prevalent in young people", the firm decided to delay reopening until September.

In August, bosses said again that they felt infections numbers had not dropped to a level they considered safe for reopening, and pushed back the opening date to be reviewed on October 11.

But following the review, yesterday (Tuesday October 12) it was announced that the play area would close indefinitely.

A spokesman for Thingamjigz said: "We have given the matter of reopening a great deal of thought. But unfortunately, we do not feel that circumstances are compatible with the reopening of Thingamajigz and have decided to stay closed indefinitely."

In August 2020, owner Steven Gartside told The Gazette he could "not rule out a permanent closure" amid concerns for the lack of guidance provided by the government during the first lockdown.

"We have 20 furloughed staff, and we can't reopen until we're told it's safe to. I wouldn't want to push to reopen earlier - I will do so when it's deemed safe," he said.