Nuffield Health Hemel Hempstead Fitness & Wellbeing Gym

Negative experience: My partner and I have been a member of Nuffield Hemel for over 3.5 years and use the gym regularly several times a week without fail. Even though I think the staff, including all the gym personal trainers, cleaners and front desk, are lovely, very friendly and knowledgable, the building and maintenance of it are letting them and the name of Nuffield down. As examples, in recent weeks, management have displayed notices that there would be no hot water in the changing rooms for the following 3 days. Ok, we didn't like that at all as we always shower after gym as we are going on to work or on to visit /care for elderly parents but we accepted it and so had to go home afterwards in the opposite direction adding lots of time to our day. But on the scheduled days, arriving early with no shower towels or clean clothes we found there was in fact hot water as engineers hadn't started yet! There was no communication at all throughout the 3 days so we didn't know what to plan for. Now a week later, today, turning up to the gym at our usual 9am, notices were up for NO HOT WATER 9-12, no prior communication and totally screwing up our day again! The pool is also recently being closed on a regular basis for problems to be fixed but generally a text is sent to members about this. In conclusion, this gym needs to credit money to its members on any days that it is not working up to scratch or close and do a serious refurbishment of the building. It is not living up to the Nuffield Brand and we are seriously thinking of going elsewhere even though we like the equipment and its staff.

Negative experience: SCAMS going on with the parking fines. Please be aware. UK parking will not supply evidence of letters or photographs showing my disability blue badge whilst I was parked outside the main entrance on double yellow lines. I received two fines for £170 each. When I questioned this at the club, the club duty manager Leo contacted them directly, he mentioned to me that they had no records of my car, and that it's possible a scam. I cancelled my membership today as I was told that I could park there with my blue badge with no restrictions. I'll keep all the members updated on my findings. Leo thank you for your help, the email you sent was forwarded onto my solicitor today, as there was quite a few accusations from UK parking company, and I will get to the bottom of this, hopefully in court James Hartnett

Fantastic experience: Very nice place

Positive experience: Really great gym facilities. Great sauna and swimming pool for just casual swimming. The swimming pool is all one level and doesn’t have a deep end. It’s also quite small. The lady at the front desk was friendly and helpful.

Fantastic experience: This is a great place for workout and relaxation

Positive experience: The building is a shadow of itself. Lovely staff and a great offering just a shame regularly there are a number of things not working or broken. A full refurb is required - not a patch up when it goes wrong. This is a premium club, but you would not guess, lack of investment is really showing now.

Positive experience: Nice staff and gym equipment, changing rooms need TLC

Fantastic experience:

Positive experience: Have been a member for 18 months or so. Find all the staff very nice and the girls in the crèche are SUPERB. Can’t rate highly enough. I can’t comment on much except for the main gym which is generally quite good except sometimes machines remain broken for a long time and lack of kettle bell weights. Also the kid’s pool on a Sunday morning is only for private lessons which seems crazy as this is the main time families want to use it! Plus occasionally the showers and heating are not working. Overall though really like the gym - just a few niggles and it could be 5 star.

Fantastic experience: I have taken part in the joint rehabilitation programme and Francisca's gentle and calm approach kept me going every week. I can say that by week 10, my pain levels were much lower and I'm slowly rebuilding an exercise routine. I couldn't recommend it highly enough.

Positive experience: Would be 4 stars as generally it is ok but the shower taps need replacing on the pool side as the temperature not good and it's leaking from the pipes and changing rooms need a general clean especially the lockers. But the sauna, steam room does need more Attention and maybe more maintenance Needed... The Mangerment are aright sometimes and Help members if needed but Not happy with the cafe being closed when I get out the pool/Gym I end up going to Costa or Greg's for a cuppa

Fantastic experience: I am attending the twice weekly Joint Pain Programme lead by Dr. Francisca Mcneill. The class is giving me the confidence to both use the excellent gym & also understand fully what I need to be doing there to improve my mobility & overall fitness. Francisca is very patient, she listens & understands each participants issues & is clearly very knowledgeable to give support & structure to our on going exercise for years to come at this club.

Fantastic experience: The joint pain. Programme is excellent francesca got me motivated and we started off slowly and by the end of 12 weeks had so much more energy I highly recommend this and hope it still continues irs fantastic I am going gym tomorrow staff are helpful and polite I'm very happy x

Positive experience: This place is generally ok but for sure needs a refurbishing urgently taps leaking in men’s shower area and spa area sauna is also always full oh hair everywhere definitely need to be improved

Fantastic experience: I am attending the Joint Pain Management Programme with Fransisca McNeill as trainer. I am finding it very beneficial. Fransisca is a very patient teacher taking into account our own individual needs. It has been very good to attend group sessions as it gives you more confidence and the gym is there for you to use as you wish. The course covers much more than just exercise, it is a well designed programme touching on wellbeing, health etc.

Fantastic experience: I did the Joint Pain Management Programme with Francisca and it was without doubt the best thing I have done for many years. Tailored for those of us with physical issues it has made such a difference to me both physically and mentally. Francsica is a superb teacher - empathetic and kind but also gives you the support to try and push yourself further than you thought you could.

Fantastic experience: I am 72 years old and this course has got me exercising daily. Francisca McNeill is a great trainer. I like the content of the course as it focuses on nutrition, and mental well being as well as physical exercise. Being committed to group sessions is what motivates me to come. When the course finishes, I will have connections with a number of people who I hope will meet up regularly and keep us all regularly using the gym.I would recommend to anybody. This is a great course.

Fantastic experience: The pain management course at Nuffield health in Hemel Hempstead Is excellent, I recommend it so much. It is run by Francisca McNeill. She is so good at what she does, you will never regret Joining it

Positive experience: Not great for the money. It really needs money spending on it to bring it up to the quality the price suggests. Cafe never seems to be open.

Negative experience: There is always something broken……

Positive experience: Would be 4 stars as generally it is ok but the shower taps need replacing and changing rooms need a general soft refurb especially the floor. But I would forgo that for decent showers that don’t burn you as the temp has got stuck. Little kids use those showers from the swimming classes and I urge you to get that sorted! General cleaning of the gym floor (the actual floor) would make difference as it can be gross and it is due to lack of cleaning from staff as the dust build up you see isn’t from use during the day. But generally ok good kit, well behaved and decent members and staff seem ok but they need to get the little things right for 4stars especially when you consider the cost

Fantastic experience: Great gym, excellent facilities

Negative experience: The lady at the front desk (blonde hair ) not sure what the name was. Isn’t professional at all. And has no manners speaking to customers! Very rude.

Negative experience: Half the equipment broke down for weeks now.

Fantastic experience: Excess customer service at reception, Hiba and team are very welcoming and friendly.

Negative experience: I was here on Sunday with three friends, four older gentlemen together, we wanted to spend an hour or two at the swimming pool, jacuzzi and sauna, unfortunately we were refused tickets, explaining that the rules have changed and you can no longer buy individual tickets, you can only enter with a membership card I have been paying for several years over £55 every month and I had time to stay once every two months. I don't understand the policy of this company, the previous owner probably understood the needs of customers better, the current team does not understand the needs of customers, which can also be seen from the opinions on the Internet, they are all negative. I hope for a quick change of the owner or the management team and the introduction of a more pro-client policy in this company. If you are to respond to criticism as in previous opinions, then please do not bother ​

Negative experience: Today 9 August 2023 17:15 A lady employee named Erica was dealing over the phone with my problem to book a class at Nuffield Hemel after 15 minutes of talking she put me to wait on the phone 10 minutes and than she hang up! I've called back strait away and somebody else answered and I asked for Erica to save me explain the situation again to a new person but she refuse to speak. It's been more than 6 weeks I haven't been in the gym because they have this app issue as everybody else know about it! for £80/month and have this service and this customer service is wordless...

Fantastic experience: I like this gym.

Negative experience: The worst gym I’ve been to so far. Personnel is unqualified and unpleasant, if you get any kind of problem, they will try to do literally nothing for you. Very overpriced because usually there’s something doesn’t work for a while, quite a lot of time seen that mirrors aren’t clean. Despite this is the most expensive gym in the area, I’d prefer to choose another one with less facilities but fair price.

Negative experience: App is useless and there is no way to book you classes

Positive experience: Good gym but way overpriced; a day pass is £15. There’s usually something is not working (sauna, steam room, jacuzzi etc.) But the actual equipment is good and the staff are friendly.

Negative experience: Very dishonest duty manager at Nutfield Hemel Hempstead on 19th May 2023 at 7.45pm. As usual I had walked in to enquiry for the day pass to swim and the duty manager turned us away and lie about they don’t do the day pass and had to be accompanied by a member as their day pass policy has changed since April. To my disbelief, I’ve called up another Nutfield branch, they have confirmed I can still use the day pass via Hussle app. I have then called up Nutfield Hemel branch to enquiry the same day pass and the same manager on duty was on the call was reluctant to confirm I can use the Hussle app for the day pass. I find the on duty manager very dishonest and unwelcoming. Great facilities but it is a shame they have a bad customer service.

Negative experience: A man was shaving his head and beard with a blade inside the spa area than he continued inside the steam room and after went inside the jacuzzi.... Each!

Fantastic experience: Everything a Nuffield Health, Fitness & Well Being set up should be

Negative experience: Very rude and unhelpful manager and reception staff who are unorganised and don’t know what they are talking about.

Negative experience: Money I will never see again. Staff failed to inform me of the poor quality spin bikes and that the jacuzzi was closed when signing up (after management felt it was costing too much money to run). Not enough classes in my opinion in comparison to other clubs. One to avoid

Negative experience: The gym is actually terrible. Sauna and steam room always broken and terrible when you compare to other Nuffield across the country. Am actually frustrated because the weight room is also awful and it’s not Nuffield standard, deserve a nice gym in Hemel and these guys scrapping off of Nuffield brands name are not supplying this. Staff are also very rude

Positive experience: Love the club but disappointed in the decision to close the spa to save heating costs

Fantastic experience: Very nice and friendly, there's plenty of chat whilst exercising

Positive experience: Expect regular issues with spa facilities etc - more generally it’s a good option given the location.

Positive experience: The gym itself is very good and the staff are friendly, BUT the rest of the facilities are substandard and suffering from a lack of investment. Poor AC, poor showers, poor decor, poor cafe, closed the spa pool to save money, no paper towel in the gym, cheap nasty body wash...list goes on. Certainly not a premium centre and truth be told, not really worth the £90 we are paying. Gets away with it as it is the only health club in the area.

Fantastic experience: Absolutely beautiful club with clean facilities with very caring and attentive staff...Reception was great -helped me with all enquiries...SPA area gives you amazing way to relax after long day at work.They offer creche and swimming lessons and great range of classes like yoga/les mills/body pump etc...Highly recommend this club...

Negative experience: Reception staff rather blunt

Negative experience: Avoid this gym. It has no air conditioning which will make you feel like you can’t breath. This is unacceptable considering how much you pay. Very busy and stuffy inside and poor variety of machines. In addition the interior is very tacky and daited better off joining a cheap gym for what you get here

Fantastic experience: I have been a member of this gym since 2019. I have to say on reflection I realise how lucky I am to be a member here. The staff without exception, from the building support team to David the Manager are excellent at taking care of the gym and doing their very best to help in any situation. It is always a positive, harmonious environment with a fantastic energy! I cannot praise them highly enough. The facilities are continually upgraded and maintained and are always kept clean and tidy. Excellent work Nuffield team a gym to be proud of!

Fantastic experience: Thank you so much for recognising the contributions teachers make by giving us a week free in half term! Good for you Nuffield House - I had a good workout and a lovely time too! Elaine

Negative experience: Took son for swimming lessons, no family changing area, or locks on lockers. Pool was warm though.

Negative experience: So I take my 2 year old son into the baby pool for our appointment and within seconds his teeth are chattering so I ask the incredibly out of shape and poor advertisement for a health club life guard to check it kindly which he does then gets back up on his chair without saying a word so I ask and he tell me its 28 degrees. I said that's a bit low no? He nods and I have to ask if its pure luck of the draw or do they control the temperature? Jesus!! He walks off mumbling about a manager and I'm thinking what am I paying for 2 memberships for?? We leave and I decide to talk to reception and inform them that these sorts of things are meant to be monitored and an experience like this can put a baby off swimming so I'm less than pleased! Having worked in this industry for more than a decade I am stunned at the lack of professionalism and almost non existent image focus of this so called health club. The amount of times I go past reception to some sort of out of shape mothers meeting in the corner and constant interruptions from other staff while your talking to one of the others is embarrassing. Tried to book appointments for the week and it took 20 minutes as the lady was constantly talking to other people in the middle of it and surprise surprise when I check it the following week its all wrong! Reception needs overhauling fast!

Positive experience: Love the Nuffield health GYMs but I wish they open at 5am

Positive experience: Great for my grandchildren

Negative experience: Froze my membership when they planned to reopen after covid as I did not want to visit the gym, this was only frozen until 1st september which I only found out when I dug through my spam folder. I was told that I needed to go to the gym before 15th august to extender the freeze of my membership. The whole point is I didn't want to enter that environment, Spoke to them & head office but apparently there is nothing they could do to refund me for september even though I have not entered the gym or used any facilities. I'v now asked to cancel my membership as the only reason we joined was to use the pool, sauna and steam room of which only 1 is open. Very disappointed with the customer service here, it was a honest mistake that I did not get this email due to it being in the spam folder, money is very tight at the moment and £46 of my money has been taken from me for services and facilities that I have not and will not use. The company is only thinking about profits is not willing to make a exception, If I had known I would have been charge I would have canceled my membership ages ago.

Negative experience: Don’t sign up here. Sauna, steam room and spa pool never work. I would say less than 25% in operation. It’s embarrassing.

Negative experience: I should have cancelled my membership a year or two ago when the awful employee who always seemed to be at reception was so very rude all the time to members. I found I was completely ignored and looked through each time I visited, no greeting on arrival or departure, even if I said 'hello' myself. A bit better now but not all the time, depends who is manning the place. A fine way to treat members who sometimes seemed to get in the way of the reception's easy life of chatting together. Together with facilities not working quite frequently (at the moment, the steam-room has been out of order for ages) and the Club management not getting a grip of correcting faults or broken facilities, the place has turned into a joke, an utter and expensive joke.

Negative experience: Always something not working, air con, swimming pool, steam room etc.

Negative experience: Reception and so-called managers are not very helpful or professional. If only I had a crystal ball 10 months ago I never would have joined Nuffield.

Fantastic experience: Been going for a few weeks now, really friendly stay, never have to wait for equipment at peak time, great facilities! May be expensive but worth every penny

Fantastic experience: This was my second visit . Friendly helpful reception staff. Free parking (to the rear of the club) The gym floor has been refurbished and is better than my home club (which is a tier higher than Hemel) Equipment was clean and plenty of it. Lots of CV equipment , great weight selection and plenty of variety . On both my visits the Male changing rooms were clean and plenty of lockers. This gym suffers from the usual “locker blockers “ which is a problem in every gym I’ve ever been a member of. That being said , they’re were still plenty of free lockers Was really impressed with Nuffield Hemel. Will definitely use it more frequently when in the area.

Fantastic experience: The best gym in Hemel Very good clean tidy and very well equipped seems to be better maintained now than people have suggested in the past

Fantastic experience: Friendly Staff, Great Physio and Facilities. I originally came here for physiotherapy but then signed up to the gym.

Negative experience: Reception staff is very bad

Negative experience: They do swimming lessons just in the main pool taking up the entire thing making swimming even one lap without stopping impossible

Fantastic experience: Only been a member for a month Excellent value for money classes very good have had no problem at all all staff very friendly. Love my Saturday morning conditioning class with Sam

Negative experience: Have to agree with previous reviewers. Reception staff ignore you. Equipment never seems to be cleaned as dust mounds everywhere. They seem to have continual problems with heating. I've left.Better value for money elsewhere.

Negative experience: Reception staff inhospitable. Never say good morning or goodbye. (Staff in coffee shop very friendly). Continous problems with heating so its either freezing or very hot. Management incompetent and not engaged to needs or concerns of gym goers. Recent fee rise so have left and joined a better run gym.

Negative experience: Saturday staff at reception, o dear. Am hardly noticed when I am at the reception area for anything at all. Can’t wait for my children to finish their 10 lessons.

Fantastic experience: Nice relaxing place

Fantastic experience: Very relaxing place to be.

Negative experience: A good gym with good facilities and good staff but recently the cleanliness has been very poor and there seems to be constant leaks

Positive experience: This review is for the pool only. Small length indoor pool (~15 meters), 5 feet deep, 4 lanes, with a large pond on the side. While laps are possible, this is really not a lap pool. The various activities leave only one lane for swimming, with plenty of distraction from the adjacent lanes. The timer is located on the short end of the pool, forcing swimmers to stop to be able to check progress. Water temperature is a bit high, so is the chlorine. Works out well for water activities, not so well for laps.

Negative experience: Gone down hill since taken over by Nuffield. Nice pool and good range of gym equipment but standards of cleanliness have fallen dramatically.

Negative experience: Monday 20th August 2018 - at last - new and refufurbished equipment on the gym floor. The cost - work carried out during opening times with half the floor fenced off. Tonight the pool closed early for what we were told was a deep clean....strange that the lights went off as we left the pool. My experience so far is that I am not valued as an individual paying member. The male changing room floor was foul and last night the toilets we're blocked. I was told the changing rooms are due upgrade at Christmas. The staff I have spoken to are courteous and helpful. More than a gym? It would be nice if this could become a good gym for each individual member before looking to be more...... Wednesday 24 May - found out why reception do not answer - no phone in reception!! Tuesday 23rd May 2018. Been here before (see below). No hot water again - this time text from club Friday 18th & Tuesday 22nd May with a request to call club for update - except they do not pick up phone or reply to messages left. March 2018 - we have clothes hangers - yippee. February 2018 - This week - no hot water (again), I bring my own hanger, soap and wet bag (as they are not present). I always wear flip flops in the showers and changing room as floor can be dirty. There are always a number of gym machines not working - currently the step machine has been broken for 7 days with the screen missing. The Watt bikes, rowing machines and other equipment are worn and 'sloppy' in use. What made me sign up? - the pool is usually empty of people and I get a good swim. When I called today to check if the showers were working I was told they were. I inquired if that meant they were hot - and was told "Not hot but working"!!!!!!!!!!

Positive experience: Very expensive

Negative experience: Staff are fantastic but this gym is in desperate need of a refurb otherwise it's going to lose a lot of customers to other gyms in Hemel. The showers are disgusting. In the men's there is a piece of chewing gum in one that has been there for 2 weeks. They old extremely tired and the flooring is cold, dirty and slippery and these desperately need a complete rehaul. The pool is generally clean but was absolutely filthy this week. The cafe is great to have but personally I'd prefer it to be half the size and for there to be an additional family changing room. There are a lot of machines but even these are getting tired now. There's competition in the area and Nuffield need to up there game and give the staff and customers better.At the moment it just feels like they are running it in the cheap.

Fantastic experience: A great gym and the equipment is very well kept. if a piece of equipment brakes they will fix it as soon as possible. the staff are really friendly and the personal trainers know what they doing and they help you out with any enquiries that you may have to best of there ability.

Positive experience: Lovely friendly staff and classes are great, but it is very tired and needs a revamp. Machines are sometimes dirty and everythi g appears to be the same as it was when it was esporta. The poolside is exceptionally slippy to the point of being dangerous and the Jacuzzi needs a good clean (the metal handles appear to have years of dead skin on them). The cafe is lifeless and appears to be neglected so having a post workout coffee or bite to eat is not appetizing. If not for the classes and the staff not sure I would pay the money to stay which is a shame as it would not take much to bring it back to life.

Fantastic experience: Excellent gym, lots of weights and large selection of other modern equipment to use. There are plenty of classes to choose from 7 days a week. It has a good size swimming pool with individual lanes and a good sized Jacuzzi and steam room. Changing rooms and showers are good with lots of locker spaces it is always kept very clean. The staff and personal trainers are always friendly and helpful. There has been major changes since I last wrote this review. The gym floor has had a major refit with most equipment replaced with more high tech equipment. You are now able to record your progress levels using the my wellness app which is a great motivator for your workouts. The showers are also being completely renewed which will make a huge difference to the gym experience. This is a great gym always helpful trainers and staff.

Negative experience: Was ( going downhill ) Virgin now Nuffield but with no change. Infact getting worse. Received some fantastic emails reference new changes/plans but nothing. What are they doing??? *Entrance turnstile STILL out of order. *Changing rooms dirty and never a sign of a cleaner. *Today four out of five bikes in Gym were out of order. Nice staff but with no solutions. Just ..fill in complaint form please. My husband left two weeks ago and now I think I will too.

Positive experience: Convenient location, close to the M1

Positive experience: Used this gym for free over a bank holiday as I use another Nuffield. Good size with plenty of equipment but some of it was pretty tired with some machines having ear piercing squeals that are seemingly ignored. In my opinion the membership price is too steep with so many other options now available.

Positive experience: Decent gym, good selection of weights, pool, sauna and steam room. Plenty of cv machines.

Negative experience: I filled in a feedback form over 3 weeks ago. I was told today that someone would contact me, they have not. The pool is too small and when they have lessons one lane is not usable. You can have 4 people swimming in 1 lane which is just about the right size for 1.

Negative experience: I have had to go through the task of moving over to Nuffield from Virgin Active whilst still maintaining my membership with my home gym. I have been a member for 15 years, and using Hemel Hempstead for over 4 years, due to work and I still had to pay £20 admin fee. I am disgusted that they have charged me this. Lifeguards where on the front desk !!! And the website states Hemel Hampstead !!! People need to prove read before adding to their webpage, as this is spelt differently

Fantastic experience: The pool is lovely and clean, the food is brilliant and the staff are friendly.

Fantastic experience: My first gym and totally impressed , clean and staff are very helpful and friendly

Positive experience: A good gym, however would have preferred if there were more than just 1 yoga class in the evening.There is a good coffee shop available here to non-members as well.

Positive experience: I like this health club very much. I used almost one year and don't think I was missing anything here. The only reason I exit from here is its expensive compare to others in nearby area.

Positive experience: Food here can be varied here as chef is always different. Staff always friendly and helpful

Negative experience: I was threatened to be beaten up by a personal instructor as i was using the weight machine he had just finished with a client but he needed the arm attachement and i could not use it. When i challanged him, I was told i was lucky as he was wearing his instructor t-shirt otherwise he would beat me up!! Why the rage i wonder?! Apparently this 20 something year old personal trainer knows my type of people, i am 47 yo professional accountant and have been going to health clubs longer than his entire life.

Positive experience: Happy, smiley staff but unable to sort out issues with membership log on after changing their booking system. Poor entertainment system in gym - many machine have no TV or radio, others it is limited. Not worth the high charges.

Negative experience: I'm going through an awful time with Virgin Active. I've missed out on months of gym (and have to pay for it) because they told me I could cancel my membership when in reality I was tied into a contract (my fault for not understanding this monthly rolling contract thing where only the additional person on the contract can cancel.. hmmm.). They didn't bother telling me the cancellation had been denied at the time.. Then 2 months later I'm wondering why I'm still paying full price so I cancel the direct debit, thinking they've made a mistake and overcharged me.. No one gets back to you when you call. No one is available when you attend. Another two months later and I'm still messing around. Looks like I'll just have to take the hit. Not even an apology. I was actually going to join back up in June, I just didn't have any time to go because I was doing my house up. I won't be continuing the contract into a second year!

Positive experience: This Esporta is currently being re-branded as Virgin Active. I have been a member for three months, and don't have any problems. The negative reviews obviously have some bad personal experiences, but lots of people go there and are happy. My wife and parents are also members, and we take our kids there for swimming. The gym and swimming pool are good. Not excellent, but have everything you need. I've been to the more expensive Esporta in Oxford, and much prefer the one in Hemel. Only negative points for me: it is a shame they closed the spa (lose a star for that), and the creche is now slightly more expensive. For the reviewer who complained about the lockers, they have replaced all the locks with a padlock system.