The Warehouse Climbing Centre in Gloucester to Cease Operations, Relocating to New Park

The Warehouse, a climbing centre situated in the heart of Gloucester, is scheduled to cease operations at the conclusion of November, marking three decades of business. Established in 1994, it was initially among only five dedicated climbing facilities across the UK. Its owners have stated they have outgrown the existing Victorian building, prompting a move to brand new facilities. These new facilities, they claim, will “allow us to become one of the best in Europe again.” The new climbing park is slated to open in December. Robert Stevens, the director, commented that it was time for the centre to transition. He stated, “We’ve almost outgrown our current facilities, so it’s the end of an era for many of us that learned to climb in Gloucester and learned to climb at The Warehouse. We’ve had 300,000 people through the doors with memberships alone, but unfortunately climbing has evolved in that time so we’re winding up and closing the business on the 28 November with a big party.” Robert also shared positive news for climbers, indicating that operations will resume just one week later at a brand new climbing park. He explained, “Luckily we’re also opening a new climbing centre, 270 climbing in Bentham, where the domes used to be.” He further added, “What 270 will do is allow us to become one of the best in Europe again.” The sport of climbing has experienced a significant surge in popularity in recent years, partly aided by Team GB’s success at the Paris Olympics. Concurrently, the indoor climbing industry has transformed considerably since The Warehouse’s initial opening. Mr. Stevens noted that the forthcoming facilities will differ greatly from the existing centre, which began as a passion project within a dilapidated warehouse. He elaborated on the centre’s origins, stating, “There was around 2,000 pigeons, most of the windows were broken and it was mostly done with semi-voluntary labour. It was a real passion of people in the area. It was almost crowdfunding before crowdfunding existed and we signed up over 30 shareholders who invested in the project.” The second phase of the £7m Climbing Park at Bentham is scheduled to open on 6 December. The forthcoming bouldering gym will possess a footprint more than five times larger than that of The Warehouse. Patrons will also have access to various climbing walls reaching heights of up to 4.5m (14.7ft).