Covid: Preston gym forced shut for opening in lockdown

A gym that has been fined three times for staying open despite Covid-19 rules has been closed, officials have said.

Steve Todd, owner of Reps Gym in Preston, has been visited by police several times after breaching the government ban on gyms operating during lockdown.

Earlier this week, he said the premises "massively helps" users' mental health and that he was not charging customers.

However Preston City Council said his actions were "unsafe".

The authority's environmental health officers, accompanied by Lancashire Police, shut the premises overnight.

It followed a three-month closure order by a magistrates court, which was granted on Friday.

The court charged the gym to pay more than £9,000 in costs and has also made it illegal for anyone to use it while the order remains in place.

A council spokesperson said the closure followed "a number of visits to the gym by environmental health officers as well as Lancashire Police to explain Covid restrictions, and to issue fixed penalty notices for failing to close, all of which were ignored".

The authority's deputy leader Peter Moss added: "The irresponsible behaviour to deliberately ignore Covid restrictions has posed a risk to public health and we had no choice but to pursue this resolution, after weeks of actively engaging with the business owner to help him understand the restrictions.

"While we all want gyms, restaurants, bars and every other business to be able to reopen, this remains unsafe while the pandemic continues to pose such a great risk to public health and it is important that businesses and residents continue to follow the rules until it is safe for things to return to normal."

A Lancashire Police spokesman added that the force "fully support this action".

Mr Todd previously told the BBC that while he shut the gym during the first lockdown, he felt unable to do so again.

"Some of my members are desperate to train for their mental health. So I told them not to worry - they can still come free of charge."

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