We pay our business rates. We pay our VAT. We contribute positively to our neighbourhood. We increase the value of our neighbourhood. We fill in their forms. We jump through their hoops.

We do all of this and more. So can we rely on our council to look after us in return? Or treat us fairly? No.

This is the sad reality of running a small high street business. In our experience anyway.

On the 21st February we (temporarily) lost a fight with Hammersmith and Fulham council and were forced to close Move due to a noise complaint under the Noise + Nuisance Act. Although the immediate matter was temporarily solved in a matter of days, the battle is very much ongoing.

Prior to the complaint and threats of foreclosure, no member of the council came to the studio or offered to meet with us. No member of the council suggested a positive solution. Nobody offered help.

We of course make noise. We are a gym. We do not however wish to be a nuisance to, or negatively impact the daily lives of our neighbours. Finding a reasonable solution is all we ever asked. But this was asking too much.

In order to reopen the gym, we spent £7000+ to further soundproof our ceilings and pillars. We believed this would solve the majority of the problem. However, it turns out the Officer wrongly informed us as to the location of the complainant and as such, the works were in vain.

Legal fees included we have now spent in excess of £11,000 trying to resolve this issue. However we find ourselves back at square one, with the threat of a forced closure becoming a very real thing.

In order to prevent further action from the council, we must now install noise-reducing secondary glazing to our rear side windows (to prevent noise leakage to the actual area of complaint). We will also be installing a new ventilation system as we can no longer open said windows without breaching terms set out by the council.

This time, instead of asking the council for help, we are swallowing our pride and asking you.

If you are able to help in anyway, big or small, we would be incredibly grateful to be able to put this nightmare behind us and get back to focussing on what we do best; serving our members and making people happy :)

Our target is £7,500. This will cover 75% of the costs. If we fall short, we will dig deep and cover the costs regardless. If we raise more? We will cap it at £10,000 (the total cost of works).