Caringbah YMCA helps Shire community and fitness

The Caringbah YMCA has recently undergone an $800,000 transformation, responding to local area demands and developments in the fitness industry.
The Centre now boasts a newly equipped gymnastics centre, which continued to run all the way through the construction and presented an operationally challenging issue for staff, moving flooring between the natural ebbs and flows of visits and closing hours of the centre.
The most technologically advanced addition to the centre is the Spin room. New to Australia, Caringbah YMCA has one of the four virtual spin rooms and attracts many group fitness and individual members to enjoy during the day.
The front desk/reception area has been completely redesigned to maximise the customer service experience and at the same time improving the working situation for staff. This presented training requirements for staff too so that they moved from roles based mostly on administrative duties to now having a customer service culture. This has taken a period of a few months and meanwhile supported with changes to centre signage, marketing collateral and changes of use to some parts of the centre.
Systems and technology have greatly aided the customer service, allowing staff to book members into classes and improve the appointments process.
Since being fully open with an extended and much improved health club, word of mouth and referral memberships have been high and a higher number of mature adults have been enquiring and joining the centre.
Centre Manager, Brendan Owens explains that âtotal memberships have risen from 300 (pre-redevelopment) to 1,200 and (are still) rising.
âFor âPrYme Moversâ, the mature adults program, members have risen from 108 to over 200.
âPersonal training sessions have seen massive growth and group fitness class are going on to 100 a week because of the demand.�?
âItâs been a great journey for the team but most of all itâs been a huge culture change for everyone. Itâs great to work at a centre thatâs buzzing with all the activity.�?
âWe know that word of mouth referrals are spreading like wild fire across the area because membership is such great value for money and members all get a personal touch.�?
The history of Caringbah YMCA goes back to 1964 when the YMCA of Sydney signed a 21 year lease with Sutherland Shire Council and, with the help of the Rotary Club and other fundraising initiatives in the local community, raised $80,000 to build the original centre consisting of a basketball stadium and meeting rooms.
The centre, opened by Sir Frank McDowell in November 1968 and flourished, housing many programs for young people. At this time YMCA of Sydney was operating out of one location on Pitt Street, running gymnastics programs for the young men of Sydney.
Further extensions to leases were agreed as the years passed and small redevelopments were made to the site. In the 46th year of residency and with a further tenure for 21 years, it is the most recent redevelopment that will ensure progress is still made in developing The Shire residents and community in body, mind and spirit.