Play Valley Sheffield: Owners close doors and contact police after ‘finders wardens’ post about lost wristband

Staff were disciplined and an apology was sent to the family involved, bosses said.

And they are said to be looking to improve employment practices after an issue was raised on social media over DBS vetting staff – although they insisted the company complied with ‘all requirements’ legal” – and “was closing for a while”.

Their relative returned to ask staff if he had been found and said that two hours later they received a private message with evidence of comments about the missing jewelry which had been made during a staff group chat .

One read ‘finders keepers’ and another said, “We’re definitely pawning it.” Will pay for the evening for all of us.

A third message appeared to falsely insinuate that the mother’s partner was a drug dealer, stating: “Her boyfriend literally had 2 old Nokia phones on the table. He clearly knew what job he had. I’m sure he can replace it.

In a Facebook post, ‘Simon and Sarah’ – believed to be directors Simon Jesson and Sarah Wilkinson – wrote: “We are deeply saddened and disappointed by a personal incident that has unfolded over the past few days on social media. We sincerely apologize to the family involved for the distress and upset caused to them.

“Following this incident, we took immediate disciplinary action to deal with those involved. An investigation is ongoing and the matter has been reported to South Yorkshire Police.

He went on to describe the impact on them and the business saying he was “ripped apart”.

“For many years we have worked hard to build a business that we love very much. To see our hard work, the time spent and the sacrifices we make as an entire family being ripped apart overnight is truly devastating.”

“We pride ourselves on Play Valley for being a fun, clean and safe environment for families. However, we will now be closing for a period of time to make the necessary changes and improvements, rebuilding our team with employees who can support our vision.”