Do you remember the Springs Health Club at Teesside Park?

But now, 10 years on, the former Springs Health Club is just a distant memory; the land once occupied by a swimming pool and changing rooms now home to a mega Barker and Stonehouse stocked full of luxury sofas and stylish decor.

There’s now a generation of shoppers that know only the site of the mammoth furniture retailer’s shop, which opened its striking building - home to a living wall - back in 2015 after the health club was demolished. 

Photos of the unit are like stepping back in time - but also tell a sad story.

In its later years, the Springs Health Club stood empty and decaying at the entrance to the popular shopping park, having been closed off since 2007. 

We’ve delved into The Northern Echo archives to get a snapshot of life at the club back in the 1990s, with images showing a keep fit session at the site and entrepreneur Stan Henry, who previously owned several clubs under the Springs brand. 

Stan Henry at Springs Health Club at Teesside Park in 1997 (Image: MIKE GIBB)

A keep fit session at Springs Teesside Park (Image: MIKE GIBB)

Sadly, photos from Google tell a different story - with images taken in 2009 showing how the derelict health club was falling into disrepair, with windows then boarded up and grass growing up its sides. 

A keep fit session at Springs Teesside Park in 1998 (Image: Mike Gibb)

Pictures also show how much has changed around the former gym too - with businesses including Frankie and Bennies, Chiquito, Staples, and Comet all being retailers than were located beside Springs but have since closed. 

The club stood empty from 2007

It was once the first sight shoppers saw coming into Teesside Park (Image: GOOGLE)

The opening of the flagship Barker and Stonehouse at Teesside Park was a major deal at the time, with the firm having been founded in Stockton in 1946.  

Fast forward to 2024 and the store - which is the size of a football pitch and houses two floors of retail space - remains popular as ever, as well as being recently joined nearby by the likes of Five Guys, Tim Hortons, and more. 

Recommended reading:

• County Durham family mourn loss of 'beautiful' son after A1(M) crash
• 5 drivers fined for speeding on the A1(M) in County Durham
• Empty business units in Darlington looking for new owners

Get more from The Northern Echo with a digital subscription. Get access for 3 months for just £3. Click here.

Teesside Park is continuing to draw in big-name brands as it continues refurbishment of storefronts in the Retail South area of the park. 

Chains to recently open up include Nike, Primark, Wagamama, Lush, and B&M - with the likes of White Stuff, Rituals, and Mango all set to join soon. 

And aptly, 10 years on from the last gym being open in Teesside Park, national firm PureGym is preparing to open a new venue in the former Millennium nightclub, with work now ongoing.