A Liverpool boxing coach wants his gym to be a sanctuary where people can help recover from the emotional and physical impact of lockdown.
Robbie Butler, 47, who runs the Rydal gym in Kirkdale, told the ECHO that he has heard countless stories of people who have struggled with lockdown and stress created by the pandemic.
Robbie, a dad-of-two from Kirkby, said he wants his Stanley Road club to be somewhere ordinary people can release emotions and talk about their problems.
Robbie said: " I have heard some sad stories over the last year. A lot of relationships have ended due to the stress of lockdown. People have suddenly been stuck together for 10 hours a day in a flat which had led to issues.
"Hopefully when we open up the public in April we can be a place where people can shake off the stress and talk about how they feel.
"Fortunately attitudes have changed a lot in recent years and it's now okay to talk about mental health. What is not okay is bottle it all up.
"I think heavyweight champion Tyson Fury has helped lead the way by talking about it. If the hardest man in the world has spoke about struggling to cope, it really is okay."
In 2010 Robbie took over the Rydal with a friend, investing £20,000. Two years later a fire in the sauna nearly ruined his hard work when the first floor boxing gym suffered heavy smoke damage.
The gym is based in the old Bankhall Girls Institute building on Stanley Road. The institute offered education to girls in the Kirkdale area. In the 1970s the building became the Rydal youth centre, but it closed around 2006 due to funding issues.
Robbie told the ECHO that it was still important for the Rydal to provide a positive role in the wider Kirkdale community during the lockdown.
He said: "One of our lads Joe Gerrard helped organise a food bank and toy collection in the approach to Christmas. And when we do re-open later in the year we will be looking to all we can help to everyone to get their heads, bodies and diets sorted out."
Robbie said the Oliver King Foundation recently donated a defibrillator to the gym which is now on the first floor.
The charity was founded by Oliver's dad Mark after his son died in 2011 from a medical condition known as sudden arrhythmic death syndrome (SADS).
Enter your postcode below to find the latest number of cases near you
Robbie said: "Yes its great for us but we also want the Kirkdale community to know its here too. "
Robbie said that attitudes to boxing clubs were still a bit rooted in the past. He said: "I would say about five per cent of what we do is concerned with actual boxing with professionals and amateurs.
"The other 95% is helping ordinary people with their fitness , diet and then community work.
"I am hoping the city is going to bounce back this year and we want the Rydal to be here for people who want to regain their fitness and talk about their problems."
