A TRAMPOLINE park which was hit by 102 injuries within three weeks of opening was operating without a licence.
An insider at Midlothian Council confirmed Ryze did not have an indoor sports entertainment licence in place when they opened three weeks ago, although they had applied for one.
Ryze, in Dalkeith, Midlothian, announced on its Facebook page yesterday that it was temporarily closed – but said only it was due to “licensing issues”.
The club admitted it had attracted over 26,000 customers since opening. Adults pay £10 an hour, meaning the park is likely to have earned in the region of £250,000 in three weeks.
One customer suffered a broken neck while trampolining and claimed staff moved him following his accident.
Other injuries included a broken leg, torn ligaments and “popped” ankles.
The 10,000 sq ft facility boasts an expanse of 60 connected trampolines and customers are allowed to bounce freely between them. There is also trampoline dodge ball, foam pits, bounce boards and basketball hoops.
The council insider said: “They closed on a voluntary basis. It has been operating without a licence. They had applied for a licence – it was certainly before they opened. My understanding is, it hadn’t been granted. They agreed with the council they should close voluntarily rather than the council maybe take legal action to close them.”
Last Friday – the day the injury rate was revealed – a post on Facebook showed Ryze staff proudly posing with their new first aid certificates.
A spokesman for Bags First Aid confirmed that Ryze staff had received first aid training just two days before the news about the level of injuries broke.
He said: “On the 18th February staff at Ryze received training from us. I don’t think it will have been the only training they had. That is all I can say on the matter.”
Christopher McKenna, 49, from Bonnyrigg, Midlothian, broke his neck at the park three weeks ago. His wife Claire claimed that Ryze staff lifted and moved him off the trampoline, although the park denied this had happened.
Last night, she said that she was not aware the park had been operating without a licence. She said: “It’s not for us to comment now. We wanted to raise awareness, and we’ve done that. It’s for the council now. We’ll hand it over to them.”
One of the victims was a two-year-old boy who broke his leg following an accident at the centre, which opened on January 23 this year.
A photograph has also emerged of a toddler standing in the middle of the trampolines, despite the minimum age for “bouncers” being seven years old.
Ryze wrote on their Facebook page yesterday: “Ryze Edinburgh has temporarily closed while Midlothian Council and the owners of the facility work together to investigate and resolve Licensing issues at the centre in Mayfield, Dalkeith.”
Ryze admits 102 accidents have been recorded but said its incident rate was just 0.39%, making it better than the industry norm and safer than other activities such as baseball and football.
A Midlothian Council spokesman said: “Midlothian Council can confirm Ryze Edinburgh has applied for an indoor sports entertainment licence. This is currently being processed in terms of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982.
“We are continuing to work with Ryze Edinburgh to investigate and resolve this licensing issue.”
