SE23 Forum

Am not sure about feedback form but there is a feedback console opposite the reception desk. Probably not sited in the right place now I think about it as the exit barriers lead you to the cafe area instead.

I'm not much of a swimmer but the building looks fantastic and the facility is surely an excellent addition to the Forest Hill area. Well done to everyone at the Forest Hill Society for the work they've put into this over so many years.

Eh? Just the Forest Hill Society? I think alot of people, including the FHS have campaigned long and hard for their baths to be re opened in Forest Hill. Well done everyone.

To avoid the queues if you just want to go in for a swim, you can pay at the self service kiosk which is situated on the back wall opposite the tillpoints. The machine only accepts cards, but will let you pay £3.05 and spits out a ticket at the bottom.

The only thing is, the part with the barcode didn't print - not a problem for me this morning as the barrier was open, but might be if this is an ongoing problem.

Still, it got me in much quicker than if I'd joined the 5 deep queue.

That's a great piece of information. Thanks.

Hi there

I thought I would throw in my 2cents...

I went there today with my Mother and we thought it was very good. We really like the unisex cubicle changing arrangements and the staff were super friendly and helpful.

The pool was packed but I reckon that is because lots of people are trying it out for the first time. It will settle down soon.

The cafe seems nice and overall I think this is a wonderful new facility for SE23'ers.

Pico

Great to see the pools open, they look fantastic.

On a very disappointed note, have found out that the swimming class we booked with user 'FusionLifestyle' on this thread for my daughter has amounted to nothing. Staff at Forest Hill Pools advised that this person has left the company without providing any of the pre-opening booking details taken and the class is now fully booked until next year. Sure we are not alone in being let down by this person.

Tried the pools out for the first time on Saturday. They are great and I can't believe how lucky we are to have such a fantastic facility on the doorstep. The changing areas etc are superb. Like someone else on this thread mentioned the showers are a low point. It's feels like being spat at by an octogenarian. I've tried the gym a few times which is great too. My only slight whinge is with the policy on children swimming. Basically I have a 6yr old and a 2 year old. My 6 yr old can swim but I can't take them both swimming because if a child is under 4 they have a 1:1 policy and children under 8 need to be accompanied too. So they won't ever be able to go together. Beckenham Spa lets you if they're wearing armbands so I don't know why Fusion don't. Training pool is pretty shallow too.

Like DanW we 'reserved' into the swimming lessons for our 4 yo who has eagerly been looking forward to them since the pre opening push started in early July, the original open date being late July. We received several phone calls (so we were on a list somewhere) saying the open date was being pushed back, they said they would call again when an open date was confirmed.
We went down on the opening weekend (15/16), not having heard again on phone, and were told the family membership we took out would also cover the cost of the lessons - this seemed so good I clarified it a couple of times. I also filled out a request form to be contacted about lessons and confirm we were definitely on the list and to add a younger sibling too.
Every time i popped in (evenings and weekends - I work full time) there was a queue at the desk and frazzled staff who seemed overburdened with the queries etc (surely one line for pool & gym entry one for membership queries.) But my trust in human nature soldiered on. I finally managed to speak to someone this afternoon who said my daughters name wasn't on the list for lessons and the coordinator would call me if I filled in ANOTHER query form. Another family who I recommended to sign up so our children could swim together have been contacted so I can only concluded that as a local resident & fully signed up with a joint family membership has missed out on one of the main reasons we wanted to use the new facilities.
My partner warned me about the negative and shambolic nature of Fusion's service he had read about elsewhere & I now have to agree. My 4yo is distraught about losing out the lessons she was looking forward to, having cancelled her previous lessons at Beckenham when FHP's looked so close to completion and the sibling will have to wait well into the new year to even start swimming as well.
Sort it out Fusion and don't let down this fantastic local asset with your poorly trained and supervised personnel (individually not their fault but collectively the face of Fusion) so give them the tools to make it a great experience for us all.

Has anyone else been unlucky enough to today to have DOUBLE the normal membership amount taken out by Direct Debit? I like the pool and gym, but think £72.50 is a bit steep!

Tried to call Fusion - 20 minute hold so I gave up and emailed them. Let's see how easy it is to sort out - hopefully it's just teething issues, but would be interesting to hear if anyone else was affected.

DJ

I went for a swim yesterday and while the building is lovely and new and clean the pool was too crowded to really enjoy swimming. The lanes seemed to be very narrow. The showers seemed to be a bit slow and trickly but it was good to have hairdyers - I usually go swimming at St Dunstans but there aren't any hairdryers there which isn't very nice in the winter.

Having read all of this I'm glad I kept our family swimming lessons at the Bridge in case there were teething problems at Forest Hill. For us also with three children taking them swimming in Forest Hill isn't an option for some years with such a stringent policy.
At Beckenham we can all swim together. They also never stipulate armbands for our 5 year old. What's really tricky though is safely managing the poolside stuff with several children in tow.

I did too. Rang Sunday and they said the manager would ring me back first thing this morning. Nothing. I rang them again after lunch and it rang and rang for 15 minutes.
I find it a shame because, like you, I love the facilities and the staff there seem nice. I just think maybe there aren't enough of them to ever answer the phone!
Sophie.

Having read the later posts on this thread and as a FH pool user, the office/ admin/ membership side of things appears absolutely dire, i agree with DanW and others. We too have heard nothing about our 'booked' swimming lessons recently, despite having received emails and calls in July and early August. I too cancelled lessons at Crystal Palace in order to start at FH and now nothing from Fusion, though I still have a small hope that I will get that call this week!
Staffing and systems to allow users into the actual pool are inadequate; surely they have worked out now that there is huge demand at the weekend by families wanting to swim? Yet again on Sunday, there were lengthy queues, an insufficient one in, one out system and not enough staff to cope with it. And the staff are frazzled and peeved by it all. I don't blame them.
The centre is fantastic but it is being badly let down by Fusion, who cant seem to manage the demand. I have left feedback, i hope others have too. But I hope improvements are made soon.
Sort it out Fusion.

thesophie: I popped in earlier to use the gym and saw the manager - it has affected several people and he was very apologetic. He had a list of people to call back and apologised it hadn't been done.

He intends to ring everyone tomorrow and either offer a refund of the additional charged month, or put on a freeze next month so we don't pay anything. He looked very stressed and as usual the phones were all ringing, so I left him to it.

DJ

If anyone saw the threads on the East Dulwich Forum when their pools reopened managed by Fusion, you'll know that the same thing happened there. Completely overwhelmed and incapable of doing a job they've had months to plan for.

The pools are busy - of course they are. That's to be expected. There may also be some settling in issues with the building itself. Again, to be expected. And people are eager to get swimming lessons booked and underway. What a surprise. Why is the manager phoning people about lessons? Why isn't there a dedicated member of staff to get this stuff sorted, leaving the manager to manage?

The pools are fabulous. I really hope Fusion raise their game.

Went for our first swim on Sunday. Was very busy but well looked after. Only issue was the stainless stell fittings in the pool are already rusting so look forward to early repairs.

Other than my being picky we all had a great time and the cafe is brilliant, nice and sunny with great coffee.

In common with others we also tried to book our 5 year old into swimming lessons via email on this forum. Have also been told that it is all booked up now. Was also told that there will be a manager for this but that they hadn't taken up their post yet - so was told to check again next month (this was 2 weeks ago).

In the meantime, have had to re-book with swimming lessons in East Dulwich otherwise there would have been no lessons at all. That pool is also managed by Fusion and the procedure is a little un-friendly to say the least. It could only be done, in person at a particular time or the place was lost.

Yes the pools are lovely - it is such a shame that my daughter is not able to use them.

Speak to Keri for kids lessons.

Lots of complaints about Fusion, however my experience of them has been very positive.. I have been using the gym at Dulwich Leisure Centre for nearly a year now and have always found it and the staff excellent. Reception is always friendly and the gym staff welcoming and helpful. The gym itself is bright and very well equipped. Although FH is slightly nearer, I am very happy to stick with Dulwich.