Goals Soccer Centre

Reviews

• Appalling lack of customer service

  There were a number of problems /issues that we and other parents at our sons 9th Birthday Party, were not happy with:- 1) The list you gave us to fill in with all the children’s names and meal choice, had the meal option of a ‘’Burger’’, crossed out in biro, so the only ‘’meal’’ choice our party got was, either a ‘Hot Dog’ or a ‘Pizza’. Why had you run out of Burgers? There was no explanation from you, because as said above all you had done was cross out this choice with a biro. When the ‘’meal’’ turned up, ‘what you said, is what we got’, that is either a Hot Dog or a Pizza. You do not even give chips with your meals, but you do provide Ketchup! 2) Our booking which we paid for, was supposed to be from 4.00pm to 6.00pm. However at 4.30pm the room (2) had STILL not been cleaned up by your staff, after the previous party. Carmen had to go and find a member of your staff, and tell them about the state of the room. Eventually at about 4.40pm, member of your staff turned up with a black plastic bag to clear/tidy up our room. To say she did a bad job, would be an under statement. After she had supposedly cleaned the room, there was still Ketchup in various locations around the tables, and the bag she had filled up with rubbish from the previous party, was still in the corner of our room. As regards the state of the tables, it was fortunate for us that one of the other parents had a young child, and therefore she had a supply of ‘’wet wipes’’, which both my partner and the other parent used to ‘’do you job’’ of cleaning the tables. 3) It was only by me making a joke with the soccer coach about lager, that we found out that you provide ‘’free tea & coffee’s’’ for the parents/adults. Why had your staff not informed us of this when ‘’we booked in’’ Because if it had not been for my joke, about lager, NONE of the parents/adults in our party, would have had anything to drink for 2 hours. Yet a further example of t he lack of communication practiced by your Staff. 4) When we had the break at 5.00pm, to come in for food and the coach Amy disappeared without a word, and we were once again left in the lurch as to what happens next. Yet a further example of t he lack of communication practiced by your Staff. We went back to our room, wondering what happens next. We had to go to reception and ask for some juice for the children to drink. Eventually the juice turned up, but as we were pouring it out for the children, more of your staff turned up with the food. Not at all very well organized, and a distinct lack of communication to your paying ‘guests’? 5) The next time we returned to our room, was to have the Birthday Cake. Yet again, you left us entirely to our own devices. Yet again, we had to go to reception and ask for some juice for the children to drink. We of course did not have a ‘lighter or matches’, to light the birthday candles (as we believed you would do this as part of the party). So once again we had to go to your reception to ask for a light. Eventually someone turned up with a lighter, lit the candles and went away. We of course did not have ‘a knife to cut the cake’, so once again we had to go to your reception to ask for a knife to cut the cake. What you gave us (ordinary eating/cutting knife) was a complete joke, as you said you have no sharper/bigger knives. Trying to cut the Birthday Cake with this ‘knife’, was a nightmare, and basically the cake was ‘’ripped apart’’ by this small ‘un-suitable’ knife you provided. When people book a birthday party with you, THEY ARE NOT expected to bring their own ‘Knife for cutting the cake, and ‘Lighter for lighting the candles’ are they? 6) Most of the times we went to your reception desk, it was ‘’un-manned’’. We presume that as it was getting on for 5.30pm to 6.00pm on a Saturday night, your staff’s minds were probably more on what they were doing socially that night, as to their minds being on the job and our son’s Birthday Party, which we/they have/are paid for? 7) The match football our son got to bring home was severely scratched and worn, and had most definitely been used before and also ‘seen better days’ As your reception desk was un-manned, at 6,00pm Saturday Night when we left, we brought that ball home with us, but to say our son was disappointed would be an under statement. I telephoned your Assistant Manager on the Sunday after, explained about the ball, and he said ‘’whenever you are passing next, drop in and we will change the ball’’. Now, in the first place THIS SHOULD NEVER HAVE HAPPENED, so why did our ‘coach’ not give us a ‘’new ball’’, like you were giving to the other parties? And secondly we live in Thamesmead, so we do not have the need to travel to Bexleyheath on a regular basis. However yesterday, (Tuesday12th October), I drove over to you to exchange the ball. Will you refund the cost of Petrol and loss of my earnings, due to your Lack of Customer Care, resulting in this journey? As if to put ‘a nail in our coffin’ over this, you apparently had run out of ‘’Adaptors’’, and could not inflate the ball for me! There were other ‘events’ in this complete shambles of a birthday party, but to be honest, we think that you will agree from the few points detailed above, that your Customer Care & Communication were practically ‘non-existent’ on our sons party. At the end of the day we paid you �£142.50p for this shambles! We await a sizeable refund and apology for ruining our sons 9th Birthday Party.

  20

  Paul A.
  Review Date: 14/10/2010 Report review
• Great venue for a kids party – but appalling customer service

  Goals in Bexleyheath is a great birthday party venue for any football mad kid. My experience was unfortunately let down by their poor customer service and unwillingness to rectify their mistakes. I originally booked, and paid for, the party for 10 kids online two months in advance – so far so good. I was posted invitations for the party guests and a letter confirming my order. I arrived at the venue prior to the 11:30am starting time, 10 excited kids in tow, only to be told by the woman at the counter that they had my booking down for 12pm. I told her I’d phoned the day before to confirm the time, which was also stated in my letter, only to have her respond indifferently that she didn’t have a referee available for 11:30 and that the person who confirmed by booking on the phone “often made mistakes”. After some discussion, I was offered the party package booked for another child, despite my insistence that the name on the booking was not my child. To add to the mix up, the birthday cake presented was missing a candle – a big deal for a 7 year old. I informed the woman (who wasn’t the person on the front desk earlier), who simply remarked “I didn’t put the candles on the cake” before walking off. No attempt was made to make the simple gesture of adding another candle, much to the disappointment of my son. The party got underway eventually, and the kids loved it until we discovered that the referee was only included for 60 of the 90 minutes football time. The attitude of staff at Goals Bexleyheath was completely inadequate. I’d seriously recommend any parent considering having a birthday party at Goals to consider an alternative venue.

  20

  Chris L.
  Review Date: 28/03/2010 Report review