Owners of Robin Hood Entertainment in Newark write to Robert Jenrick MP for help

The owners of Newark’s last remaining soft play centre have issued an impassioned plea for the town to ‘use them or lose them’.

Robin Hood Entertainment has been operating on Malt Park for more than three years after taking on Leo’s Play Centre, but managing director Tim Dallison said that many people still don’t know that they are there, and more visitors are needed to ensure their survival.

“What I find incredible is that after 3.5 years of running this business as Robin Hood and the further 10years it was running before I got it pre Covid is that so many people in Newark still don’t even know we exist,” he said.

“I had a customer in [last week] who was a party at the weekend, and she was saying that a couple of mums were asking directions as don’t know where it is.

“She was shocked like me that people don’t use it or even know about it.”

After the loss of other children’s play centre’s in recent years, including Jolly Jungle, Teenie Town, and most recently Bean Block café and Little Newark, Tim is now urging other families in town to come and pay them a visit to help keep their doors open.

“I think people think because it’s a big building that it’s a big business,” he said, “We are just a small and family run — literally me, my partner, and my kids work here too — with five more staff. We are not a big corporation.”

Tim and the Robin Hood team have now written to Newark MP Robert Jenrick, expressing his concerns about the impact of the recent Budget on the indoor play industry which he has described as “nothing short of disastrous” for the sector due to escalating costs in Employer NICs, the National Minimum Wage, and reduced business rates relief.

In his letter, Tim has asked for sector-specific VAT reduction, with a 0% VAT rating on Admissions fees for children under 12, similar to VAT exemptions on children’s clothing to make play more accessible to families.

He has also asked for inclusion in consultations on business rates reform, as “indoor play centres are disproportionately affected by business rates as small businesses operating in large spaces”.

”Indoor play centres are more than just businesses; they are vital community spaces where children can develop essential social and physical skills in a safe, structured environment,” he said in his letter, “With many families unable to afford holidays, these centres provide children with opportunities to make memories, learn, and play.

“Play should be available to all, not a luxury that only some can afford. The right to play is enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, highlighting the universal need for children to have access to play without barriers.”

Tim has urged Mr Jenrick to reach out to Chancellor Rachel Reeves to make these sector-specific changes to help protect the future of indoor play.