A Huddersfield boxing gym is looking for help to renovate its new home.

Gladiators Boxing Academy has been based at Turnbridge Mills on Quay Street just off St Andrew’s Road near Huddersfield town centre for 10 years but the building is being re-developed so the club needs to move to a new base.

This needs to happen before next February at the absolute latest but, ideally, before then.

Gladiators chairman and founder Den Doyle (below) has found a potential new place at Bates Mill on nearby Milford Street, off Queen Street South, but it will need a lot of work doing.

Den said: “We’ve looked at the building twice and it seems very promising, especially as it’s a similar size to what we have now which is 6,400 sq ft. We are hoping for a 10-year lease which would be brilliant.”

The club is exceptionally busy with hundreds of people through its doors every week, including regular groups from Greenhead College and the University of Huddersfield, along with boxing classes for adults and youngsters.

One of its members, 21-year-old Florence Mangeni, has just become a professional – the first female in Kirklees to do so.

Since making her debut in 2020, Florence (pictured below) has been national champion three times and regularly spars with Sheffield-based world champion Nicola Hopewell.

Den, 52, of Linthwaite, said the gym has helped to turn countless young people’s lives around – including some in danger of falling into crime and one youngster who was on the verge of taking his own life – which is why it’s vital it carries on at a new base.

The floor at Bates Mill where the club will probably go is now just an open space so the Gladiators need to build toilets, showers and changing rooms, along with a reception area. There will also be a lot of painting to do and the area will need carpeting.

The current gym at Turnbridge Mills has four boxing rings and masses of other equipment which will be moved over.

Den has set up an initial funding appeal on GoFundMe and is aiming to do fundraisers too, such as a group from the gym tackling the three peaks.

“The club is like one great big family,” said Den. “We need everyone to rally round to make this move happen.”

The Gladiators are very well-known on the boxing circuit with Yorkshire Boxing events held there and England Boxing camps have also been staged at its gym.

Den added: “We are doing something positive for Huddersfield, Yorkshire and England so we need to be able to be sure we can continue to accommodate all that.”

To donate towards the move go to https://www.gofundme.com/f/we-are-relocating-due-to-mill-being-sold?cdn-cache=0

Anyone who can help with sponsorship, donations or practical help should email Den at denrightcross@gmail.com or call him on 07852 117520.

Turnbridge Mills is being re-developed for Fenay Bridge-based Paxman Coolers Ltd, a global pioneer in scalp cooling to help prevent hair loss during chemotherapy.

Family-run Paxman is having a new 27,000 sq ft centre built at Turnbridge Mills which will involve some demolition and will ultimately incorporate a health innovation research and digital manufacturing facility, bespoke cryotherapy research labs, engineering R&D space and offices.

Written by ANDY HIRST who runs his own Yorkshire freelance journalism agency AH! PR (https://ah-pr.com/) specialising in press releases, blogging, website content, copywriting and ghost-writing autobiographies.

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