King Alfred Leisure Centre

Negative experience: Parking is so expensive, as if they didn't want people to come.

Negative experience: Gym review: the gym is incredibly small, hot and humid due to the swimming pool nearby. 100% couldn’t swing a cat in there. The changing facilities are really unhygienic. Needs a new floor and sinks etc. as frankly put, it’s gross. It’s got really cool view of the sea and new hammer strength equipment and dumbbells, which is nice. Really low ceiling for the space, which will cause you to be careful if overhead pressing anything. It’s not worth a gym membership, in my opinion. There are better gyms in Brighton.

Positive experience: Swimming pool is okay, is a shame there is no sauna tho

Negative experience: It was smelly and tired, requires renovation

Negative experience: The hygiene standards at Freedom Leisure Centres are subpar, and the staff seem to lack adequate training, displaying a general lack of engagement and assistance. The condition of Portslade Sports Centre is particularly concerning, implying a significant management issue. It is my hope that when the new sports centre is established, the Brighton and Hove Council carefully considers the suitability of granting Freedom Leisure the license to operate it. Staff member was rude to me causing be to complain and cancel my membership, resulting in Freedom Leisure attempting to smear me and blacken my name and refusing my request to cancel my membership but instead banning me so as to save face and make themselves look good. I've had the manager of King Alfred Leisure Centre lie about me in order to save his reputation. South Downs Leisure on the other hand seem to be friendly, efficient and well trained, even welcoming me using my name, something King Alfred never do, they don't even look up and only speak to you to tell you it's time up. Don't use King Alfred Leisure Centre at all is my advise. Not unless someone else takes it over. Terrible management!

Fantastic experience: Very good

Fantastic experience: The changing rooms were clean and not cold. I went swimming. Pool water was a perfect temperature. Lane swimming for all levels. I really enjoyed it

Negative experience: So as a pensioner closer 70 then 60 . Popped in for a gym session . We are not members. We go somewhere slightly "BETTER" . Glad to see Brighton Council DOES not support concessions for B-loody auld folk so No discounts for us poor folk! Anyway my thoughts. GYM Mats could do with a good clean. Toilets filthy . No gym BOSU's (Lk it up) and for charging us close to 9 each to get in, I would expect "BETTER"

Positive experience: It is a great place and we have our spiral yearly and seasonal public parties there !!!

Negative experience: Pretty fricken tired... But where else you going to go in Brighton?

Positive experience: good lovely old place for generations

Positive experience: Hundreds of lockers, tens of changing cubicles, and only 5 shower cubicles. Good location, but it could do with refit. Lane swimming cuts 5 lanes down to 3. Slow medium and fast. Making 4 lanes would allow some graduation in speed, reducing overtaking and being overtaken.

Positive experience: Overall lots of activities to do. There is too much chlorine in the swimming pool and you can even smell it as you enter.

Positive experience: The parking is good here if you are walking into Brighton can't comment on the leisure centre

Fantastic experience: Teacher never turned up for the Pilates class, paid for the car park and waited in class

Positive experience: The facilities are a bit dated looking, but great fun things for kids to do including water chutes and roller skating

Negative experience: I give such a low score due to terrible customer service. The middle aged blonde lady in membership is awful to deal with. Every time I've ever called to ask anything I've just been fobbed off and not been able to obtain basic information as it seems nobody cares enough to be actually helpful. This place needs someone to crack the whip and get things up to standard. You fixed the gym equipment, now fix the attitude of the staff.

Fantastic experience: I love this place me and my son go twice a week very affordable staff are lovely pools alway clean showers are clean and warm changing rooms are always nice and clean we are going to do a swim and gym membership as it is worth the money parking is brilliant plenty of parking

Positive experience: King Alfred has long been recognized as a venue that offers both enjoyment and high standards of cleanliness; however, there has been a notable decline in hygiene standards recently, as it appears that there is a lack of concern regarding maintenance. The condition of the toilets is unsatisfactory, with visible dirt and neglect, while limescale has accumulated on the sinks, further detracting from the overall cleanliness. Additionally, the floors are in a state of disarray. On a more positive note, the badminton courts are undergoing repairs, with new lines being painted and air conditioning being installed in the pool area, a much-needed improvement after years of inadequate facilities. Nevertheless, it raises questions about the rationale behind these enhancements, considering that the facility is slated for demolition in the near future.

Negative experience: Filthy dirty. Belligerent staff. If I was a parent I wouldn't take my kids there. Seems to be similar for most Freedom Leisure sites in my view. I hope no more licences to run new leisure centres are dished out to them by councils.

Positive experience: Good spot to chill at the beach but I've not been inside for years.

Fantastic experience: The stuff was very friendly and quite patient, the facility is very basic but this is all i need.

Negative experience: Once upon a time King Alfred’s had a great community and lots of fun and games were to be had. A greatly cared for pool, a bowling alley, good staff who were interactive etc. On my return, it has become like so many pools around the country. The local council has let it die. Tired, old and uncared for. Bowling alley closed and left to rot. Pool looks old, dirty and ready for closure. Gym has nothing and looks old. Staff don’t care to interact and reception is very rude. What a shame.

Negative experience: Really looks tired and needs a refresh. Staff are great and facilities are okay.

Negative experience: Facilities are fine but staff always give 'I don't really care' vibes. Even the management. I wonder if they actually care about having friendly staff who are happy to help. It always just seems like I'm bothering them with every type of interaction. I miss good service

Negative experience: 2 days in a row I have paid for parking for swimming no problem but the opening times of swimming pool changes from day to day. The women at counter was unhelpful. King Alfred a sign with open time tables outside in car park or on your building would be a nice help to us all. Paying for parking to be told your swimming pool is not open is a form of abuse. Terrible support from front desk.

Fantastic experience: Great place. I feel anxious exercising around people and have tried a few gyms where I've felt intimidated, but this place is so welcoming and friendly I actually look forward to going there.

Negative experience: Really rude & intimidating reception staff, even to new members! Facilities themselves are ok. Quite small gym with limited machines but doesn’t get too busy.

Negative experience: You never answer the phone when someone calls really bad customer service

Negative experience: Got a whistle blown at me by the lifeguard. I wasn’t even in the pool! I was in the sweaty hot box that’s the spectator area and I dared to rest my feet on the EMPTY row of chairs in front of me for a minute as the heat was too much as I sat on the hard as rocks, sticky, sweat soaked plastic chairs. Still, I gave it one star as it’s a huge relief to know the lifeguards are prioritising making sure my kids didn’t drown.

Negative experience: Ok as a pool for smaller children,only one slide,and swimming lanes take a big area in main pool,tbh the pool area need attention as getting old

Positive experience: I thought that it was going to be awful, but it's actually better than my local one in the North of England that hasn't been decorated since 1992 (has just shut for 2 years for a refurb). The sports hall changing rooms are fine and the hall will do nicely for what it is..I couldn't comment on the pool though.

Positive experience: Lessons swimming for kids are excellent, but hygiene showers not stability of temperature hot , toilets dirts and floors seems unregulated cleaning mop. Smelly . Wishing futures improvements, everything will become 5 stars if they've had started now to change.

Negative experience: web site review cant see prices .which is not very good.

Positive experience: The sports hall could use a makeover as it is old and dirty. Holes have been taped over but it's very popular with the badminton crowd on Tuesday and Fridays

Fantastic experience: Nice pool old but not overpriced easy to park

Positive experience: It's a place that most people from remember As a child it is old fashioned But if the plan to flatten it and replace it with Flats I would rather hang on to it Unfortunately the swimming pools went a long Time ago its hanging on And the bowling of course sad !

Positive experience: Yesterday I visit the King Alfred, I used the gym and its changing room and took part in a pilates class. All these areas were very clean I hope it's maintained the same way. The staff providing an excellent service as usual.

Positive experience: Despite the lack of investment it struggles on. Great yoga and gym classes with friendly staff .

Fantastic experience: Go here every Friday for swimming great lessons and nice staff

Fantastic experience: Great Hall for Garba. GCS society is wonderful.

Positive experience: It is what it is run down by successive councils but still serving a purpose. Went swimming water was colder than I remember could improve by a degree or two. Needs a desperate revamp. Brighton Council do your stuff

Fantastic experience: Lovely relaxing swim on Wednesday 30th August. The water temperature was really good too.

Fantastic experience: Always a great experience here, great pool for families or solo swimmers, water temperature is just right.

Positive experience: 70s and 80s retro… that’s what this place reminds me of as it’s almost identical still to when I went there as a child. The pool is great though as it has a lot of shallower parts for less confident swimmers, all the way to the deeper end for diving.

Negative experience: Disgustingly dirty everywhere. Both toilets, male and female, out of order. Drain in showers blocked with water all over the place full of dust and hairs. Huge balls of dust rolling on the bottom of the swimming pool: do they ever clean it??? I've never experienced such a horrible swimming pool in my entire life. Avoid.

Negative experience: It's shabby and old and not well looked after.The changing rooms are manky.The one plus it has is a water slide which is invariably opened 20 minutes later than it's supposed to be, which kind of sums it up.

Positive experience: Despite its rather boring appearance outside it is very presentable within, good size swimming pool.

Negative experience: Great location, but awful building, run by kids, so is dirty and falling apart. I struggled to find the entrance.

Fantastic experience: Nice cafe, not crowded, warm pool and good warm shower, great slippery slide. Enjoyable. Yu need a pound for the locker

Negative experience: The changing rooms on the wetside stink. The building is decaying both inside and out. Most of the building is derelict and unusable. The staff facilities look like a prison chamber. The place is infested in cockroaches. Something which the staff don't care about. They even try to dress the issue by called them "Their tiny little friends", or "water beetles". The building has had it's day. It's uninhabitable and needs knocking down and replacing. My advice is if you live in the Brighton & Hove area, avoid this place like the plague. There are plenty of other centres much more pleasant with much better hygiene standards than this dump!

Negative experience: I think the only reason why I would even give this one star is due to the lovely staff. No buggy locks like the Prince Regent which means you leave your buggy completely in the hands of strangers. A simple bike lock attached to the wall would suffice. The water was freezing in the children's area, this caused quite a traumatic and stressful event for myself, my partner and my baby. I was very disappointed that I wasn't even made aware of the water until we sat my daughter in it. The children's area in general is just ridiculous and non-stimulating. not even an ounce of something to do other than a single water feature that rains water down. no small children slides, no small water feature or even gentle water feature for those parents trying to introduce water to their babies. Overall the only positive was the staff.

Positive experience: Not very clean! Same stains on shower walls for weeks. I found a huge cockroach in one. Hair clumps in showers help block the run-away regularly.Changing rooms are always scruffy and last week my cubicle was blessed with a mound of detritus including a nappy giving off an unholy stench... Some toilet seats have been loose for ages. However! This is the only pool in Hove and the water looks clean and the staff are friendly. Reasons to be cheerful!

Negative experience: Swimming pool is all time close for do free swim. Always got others clubs. And you can't swim when you are available

Positive experience: Great place good for everyone.... I take my service users there and they love it

Fantastic experience: I'm trying to get fit & swimming is the only way that's none weight bearing. The lane swimming gives me what I need & as I pay monthly, it's easier on the pocket too as I can go as many times as my body will allow! Currently building back up to 1k metres per session. I love it here!

Positive experience: Firstly, it's not the King Alfred's fault that the council has no money to spend on refurbishments. I have a real soft spot for the place. It is a very unique building. I use the pool regularly with my swimming club. The light in the pool area is great. I think the changing rooms are cleaner than Prince Reagent but they should always make sure they're on top of that. It's great there's an area where people have to take off their shoes before entering. The showers are working and reasonably warm (I like my showers very hot) there is a draught that comes through the changing rooms but not sure how they could fix that! The staff are hardworking and have always been polite and helpful. Keep up the good work

Fantastic experience: I love the king alfred pool the staff are friendly and I love the pool it's got a glass roof so when the sun shines its got nice light there's 3 lanes for all slow medium and fast so it's good whatever your ability they have a smaller pool for kids and lagoon pool for youngster and a flume the kids seem to love it's very clean and you always get a warm welcome

Negative experience: Meh used to be good. Not been since I was a kid over 20 years ago. Took my own kids for a bit of nostalgia and it's rubbish now. very basic. Used to have 3 great waterslides now only has one.

Negative experience: Closed as of March 2023, hope they refurb it nice

Negative experience: Since 6th of March there is a new entrance that is difficult to find.the entrance is on the east and the signs are pointing north?!

Negative experience: Unloved and no heating throughout the winter months makes it very uncomfortable

Positive experience: Come on Brighton council. Tidy this dump of a building up. There’s only 2 pools in Brighton and it’s not good enough.

Negative experience: It was like I was in the movie Snach, frightening, staff were lovely but won't go there again for a boxing night

Positive experience: Nice pool, needs an upgrade on showers etc

Positive experience: The pool is very clean and there are often lanes to swim in so no-one gets in your way. There is also a kids fun pool & a teaching pool. The pools seem to be well managed and have lots going on for different groups. There is plenty of individual & family changing areas with lots of lockers.However...The showers by the pool are absolutely shockingly bad & need to be refurbished - literally a trickle of water comes out. The rest of the building is huge but very tired looking in places but has huge potential- doesn't need to be knocked down just needs a lot of money thrown at it.

Positive experience: Sadly this place hasn’t been adequately invested in by successive councils for decades. It is however a building with a fascinating history and despite all the moaning about it, it remains a popular and lively place with lots going on. Favourites of ours being swimming and roller discos in the sports hall. My kids have swimming lessons there which have been amazing. True, the showers / loos don’t work properly and there are often issues with the pumps causing pool closures due to cold water! But the pool itself is great - I love the lagoon and how it joins onto the main pool, and the pool area is bright with natural light and plants (even if these are watered by the rainwater that leaks down the walls on the seafront side!). I am very fond of the King Alfred and forget these grandiose plans with giant tower blocks, I just wish it could be refurbished and restored to its former glory.

Negative experience: Terrible website and management. How is it possible in 2022 for a large company to have such a dire website in order to book a simple swim.

Negative experience: Went last weekend with my daughter, water features not working in pool, slide out of order, showers out of order, lockers broken with doors falling off, floors in changing area dirty, people walk in with their shoes from out side, toilets dirty. But it’s great to see they are spending money on refurbing their 1 year old cafe…good to see management have their priorities sorted! It’s the only place around so residents are limited. There is Prince Regent center in town, but there is no decent bus service to it….and getting there effectively doubles the cost. The place needs investment or closing. The management need to make a decision with the council who seem incapable of creating a plan for the site, which is likely why no investment is made. It’s an embarrassment for the city and is becoming unsafe to use, people will get sick from the disgusting hygiene. It gets two stars because the sports halls are ok.

Negative experience: This place needs to change urgently. Facilities are outdated and dirty. Pool is very dirty and shower and toilet facilities are shockingly dirty. Most of the time showers dont work, hot water not working. It is incredible that this place has not been renew at all. Very dissapointed. Easy solution is to close pool for an hour a day at 2pm for general cleaning and maintenance, after morning sessions and before evening ones.

Negative experience: I have been going to King Alfred for a while to use the pool and I am disgusted how dirty it is. While swimming you can find all sort of although the worst part is that no-one uses swimming caps. Yesterday I had to leave at some for the amount of hair I saw, touched and found on my body. It's ridiculous that you have to pay 5.50 for such bad service. Is the council checking it every now and then? Unfortunately I have no other choice but I would really avoid it if I could!

Positive experience: Yes its dated, yes its faded, yes it sorely needs some TLC, but it provides facilities that a city the size of Brighton is massively lacking and the staff do it all with a smile. Wish it was more modern, but very happy we have it at all.

Negative experience: Terrible customer service they don't answer the phone on hold for 30 mins all I wanted to do is book a swim for my daughter on her birthday absolutely disgusting

Negative experience: Lovely staff but the facilities really needs a makeover. Also it was freeswim week first week of holidays but when we asked the receptionist said only if you ask for a free swim(wondered why so few people there) they need to up their game.

Positive experience: It's a great day out. Yes it's to much money. Yes it's to small. But it's also a great little experience

Fantastic experience: Amazing experience my son loved the place pool is pretty good if the water was a bit warmer it would be 10/10 .

Fantastic experience: We had our daughter's birthday party. Great place to entertain the kids, we had lots of fun

Positive experience: Good gym quite small but it was nice and quiet when I went so not a problem! I normally go to Withdean which obviously has alot more space / equipment but there was everything I needed for my work that day (plus a pool!!) so i will definitely go again. Swimming pool was fine!... changing areas are a bit run down/ dated but so is the whole building due to its age and need of a revamp! If you are looking for a high tech gym super clean leisure centre then I would probably say give the king alfred a miss! BUT if you're after a decent local gym and pool for easy exercise or fun with the kids (no slide tho) then yeah I'd definitely recommend it. Hopefully it will get a revamp/ rebuild and bring it back to what it once was

Negative experience: Swimming pool is very dirty. Specially bit under the slide and at the end by the deep end...

Positive experience: Is this pool over 30 years old… yes. Is it still the best kids pool in the area. Also yes. It’s a shame the slide is out of commission it’s the best. Could do with a bit of money from the council to update but they do what they can. Very cheap to get in. £8 for 1 adult and 1 child is very good value.

Fantastic experience: Old building but Badminton Hall is one of the better ones. Good light high ceilings.

Positive experience: Does its job. But it looks and feels very dated. I used to go as a kid about 30 years ago and I think it hasn't seen a lick of paint since then. It's a very sad building.

Negative experience: Wasn't for me as the pool seemed a little dirty and the staff weren't that pleasant. But the price seemed decent for what it was.

Negative experience: Rude staff, dirty pool/showers, check out the ceiling air vents! Half of the lockers do not work. Reasonably priced.

Fantastic experience: Great pool, helpful staff, no time limits and a decent price

Negative experience: No slide at the time I went. So pretty boring. And it's freezing cold when you get out the pool to go to your locker

Positive experience: Nice and clean, generous size lockers and good showers. Took a bit of time to find a locker that had a strap attached to the key.

Negative experience: So I deleted my previous review for this place as the only reason for that review was talk about the cockroach problem but guess what I have bundles of more problems for this place and I can say now. DON'T COME HERE. here are a lists of reasons why to not come: 1. Slide no longer in use. I thought the slide being closed was due to covid but now that covid rates are really low (excluding the past month) the slide is still closed and maybe never will come back 2. Everything constantly broken. the heating is broken some of the toilets are broken and many more 3. Some bad teachers. The staff tend to be ok but the teacher are just another level. When I was swimming just a few weeks back we had a sub swimming teacher calling us lazy when we all knew we were doing our best and once we kept needing to have subs as our main teacher never came. 4. Lack of space when I go to the main pool before going to class I noticed it is always crowded and when I stopped it is even more crowded Anyway did I mention if you are doing lessons it's very expensive. So do yourself a favour and don't go here.

Fantastic experience: I love it here, it's by far my favourite pool in Brighton, all the staff members are courteous and friendly, and all the public spaces and utilities are always working and clean.

Positive experience: Good pool, serviceable gym and reasonable rates. Does better than swimming in the sea in winter...

Positive experience: The oalce is still in desperate need of a face-lift, however the pools and facilities are immaculately clean and it's a pool I would use over and over. Not much to other than swim if the one slide is out of action, but that's fine even with younger ones.

Fantastic experience: My daughter started swimming lessons and the teachers are great! We have been going for the last 3 years and she loved every stage growing with confidence in the water.

Positive experience: A multi sports complex with Swimming, five a side football, badminton, table tennis & various martial arts. There is also a well known gym attached & boxing club.

Negative experience: Too cold to be enjoyable. The pool is ok but they have reduced the pool temperature since the pandemic presumably to save money. The temperature is ok if you are using the main pool for exercise but if you are there with babies and young children it is just too cold. The worst part is coming through the lockers area once out the pool, you need to wrap your kids in a towel, my daughters lips were blue the first time we came back. As others have said its quite shocking that this is all we have in a city like Brighton, King Alfred is pretty run down and looks shabby but hey at least the money for a new leisure centre went to a good cause right, I am sure Brightons residents love the I360?

Positive experience: The aqua aerobics class was excellent. The pool and changing areas were clean. Downsides however...many of the cabinets in the changing area lacked keys or were broken. Walls show impact damage and the centre needs refurbishment. I did think about membership but no details were available...just a referral to look online...which didn't help (you have to call them...!).

Fantastic experience: Really good, my son would go every day if he could

Negative experience: Good for adults, but they need to get the slide fixed, plus smells bad.

Positive experience: If you've ever been left ringing on the phone, you'll understand why when you stand at the reception desk and watch as call after call go unanswered. The pool changing room floor is pretty muddy now that cleaning protocols seem to have been forgotten because Covid is no longer a big deal. But it's understandable as they probably expect their customers to be able to read the signs asking shoes to be removed before entering the changing area.

Positive experience: Great place and it's great value for classes and gym memberships. Gym is basic but everything you need, friendly staff and the view from the exercise bike is amazing!

Positive experience: A great small gym . Very friendly atmosphere. Not at all intimidating. Lovely views over the sea and the swimming pool .