Two leisure trusts in the North West of England have joined forces in a strategic alliance to deliver services more economically.

Between them, Link4Life in Rochdale and Oldham Community Leisure, manage 22 sites across health, fitness, sport and leisure, as well as arts and entertainment venues and services, on behalf of their local authorities.

The Concordat will enable the social enterprises to seek best value opportunities and to identify where joint initiatives can generate savings and improve effectiveness. Priority areas currently include health improvement, reciprocal gym memberships, marketing, CRB checks and procurement of central service contracts, such as cash collection.

Ian Kendall, CEO of OCL said: "OCL already shares Link4Life's Senior Financial Officer, and his overview of both businesses has helped to identify potential economies, where one organisation is paying less than the other for goods and services. Further formalising this joint working will allow more cost-effective working. Demonstrable evidence of joint working, that mirrors initiatives within Oldham Council and Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council, should also strengthen our positions in the contract tender process."

Craig McAteer, CEO of Link4Life added: "We have been working closely with OCL for some time now and this formal agreement will help to cement the partnership relationship. We hope that this collaboration represents the start of more cooperation between third sector organisations in the North West."

Link4Life and Oldham Community Leisure are members of sporta, which represents more than 100 leisure trusts across the UK, managing more than 910 sites on behalf of local authorities. Combined, these attract more than 202 million customer visits and employ almost 21,400 full time equivalent staff.