All staff at Ayrshire's new climbing centre were made redundant before the centre reopened today.
Above Adventure will partially reopen their £4 million Kilmarnock venue this evening after a troubling few months.
Bosses at the charitable organisation announced in July that the centre would close at the end of July for the remainder of the year because it was not financially viable.
It has since emerged that the bouldering hall at the former Grange Church will reopen this evening — a little over a month since they closed — but staff have been axed in order to reopen the facility.
A vague statement on the charity's website stated that staff numbers had been 'reduced'.
The statement reads: "We are sorry to say that we have had to reduce the number of staff at the centre. We are extremely grateful to all those that have worked so hard throughout this year."
Above Adventure founder Dean Pastulovic confirmed to the Kilmarnock Standard that "all staff" had been made redundant and that just two funded places at the centre had remained along with volunteers. The exact number of workers made redundant couldn't be determined.
Although the charity does want to bring in full-time instructors and modern apprentices when the centre is fully up and running.
In the meantime, vital outreach work with Additional Support Needs (ASN) kids has been brought into the bouldering hall too.
It's estimated that the centre will be fully operational by February 2023.
In a bid to boost numbers at the climbing centre, prices have also been reduced.
The full statement on the charity's website reads: "The Above Adventure team have some fantastic news to share. We’ll be back, with doors opening to our fabulous boulder wall, on September 5.
"Our new opening hours will be: Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 5pm to 9pm. And Saturday from 10am to 4pm.
"We have new and reduced pricing too! Entry for adults will be £6 and entry will be £4 for under 16s.
"As a charity, it’s important that we demonstrate value for money in everything we do and that every penny is spent wisely. That’s why in July we had to temporarily close the boulder wall to focus on the building project of our full sized climbing wall next door.
"We’re excited to say that it is really taking shape and everyone is working really hard to complete all the work.
"Now that we know when that work will be completed, we are able to re-open the boulder wall again."
Above Adventure is jointly funded by Scottish Government Regeneration Capital Grant Fund Historic Environment Scotland, East Ayrshire Council’s Renewable Energy Fund, Resilient Scotland, the Robertson Trust, Sport Scotland, William Grant Foundation, Architectural Heritage Fund, the Garfield Weston Foundation and the Pilgrim Trust.
The statement continued: "At the same time we are sorry to say that we have had to reduce the number of staff at the centre. We are extremely grateful to all those that have worked so hard throughout this year.
"Moving forward, throughout the remainder of 2022, our team of outreach volunteers, working alongside staff, will bring some of the vital work they do into the bouldering centre. This will allow us to be open to the public and support our outreach communities at the same time.
"On behalf of everyone at Above Adventure, thank you for your kind support in recent weeks and we look forward to seeing you again."
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