Local authority news

Social enterprise, Places Leisure, which is part of the Places for People Group, has appointed Belinda Steward as MD. Steward was previously MD at Derwent ... More

Iberian operator, Go fit, has confirmed its plans to move into the Italian market next year, following the release of strong year-end results for 2023. ... More

Two new research reports have highlighted the impact of the UK's cost of living crisis on people's physical activity levels and there have been calls ... More

A proposed change to the way councils organise the operation of their leisure facilities – including gyms and health clubs – could see not-for-profit leisure trusts ... More

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) is everyone’s responsibility, especially given the industry’s ambition to broaden its reach and benefit more people and to this end, ... More

Councils in the UK will benefit from hundreds of thousands of pounds of extra revenue due to a change in VAT legislation. Prior to March ... More

Go Fit has started work on a new wellness hub in Tenerife. It will open in Q4 of 2024 and be fully operational by the ... More

Mark Braithwaite is to join Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council as chief operating officer. Braithwaite, formerly CEO of leisure management contracting firm 1Life, will start with ... More

A number of UK local authorities and their leisure management partners are in crisis due to rising energy costs, with 40 per cent saying leisure ... More

Merlin Entertainments has secured a contract to operate Blackpool Sandcastle, the UK's largest indoor waterpark. The visitor attractions giant will take over the day-to-day management ... More

Eleven local authority areas in England are sharing £12.7m as part of a multi-year funding programme to deliver social prescriptions for walking and cycling. The ... More

Community benefit society Leisure in the Community (LITC) and 1Life Leisure Management Solutions (1Life) have agreed to go their separate ways after a long-standing 20-year ... More

Key organisations from the UK’s leisure industry are lobbying the government for financial support to help operators manage the impact of rising energy prices. A ... More

UK Active has released its final report on COVID-19 cases among health club, leisure centre and swimming pool customers. The report, called Safe and Essential, ... More

Harrogate Borough Council has launched a community health and wellbeing company to manage its portfolio of leisure centres, swimming pools and gyms. Called Brimhams Active, ... More

Center Parcs is set to develop its sixth UK holiday village in Southern England. The company has secured an option agreement to acquire privately owned ... More

It is unlikely that the UK will see a Work Out to Help Out scheme being introduced, despite sports minister Nigel Huddleston saying he "understood" ... More

The government has said it has no plans to fund a Work Out to Help Out scheme to encourage people back to exercise after lockdown, ... More

A Parliamentary Petition calling for gyms to reopen first after the current national lockdown in the UK has passed the 100k signature milestone, which means ... More

The UK government has provided a lengthy response to a petition which demanded that gyms stay open in England, even if there's a new spike ... More

The government has pledged to invest £100m in supporting public leisure centres this winter, as part of a £1bn additional support package for local councils. ... More

Gyms will be free to open on high streets across England from September 1, following changes to legislation, following intense lobbying from industry body, ukactive, ... More

Paul McPartlan has moved from Nuffield Health to take up the role of CEO of Places for People Leisure. McPartlan will take up the reins ... More

Planning permission has been submitted for a naturally filtered thermal experience and botanical spa and wellbeing hub on a dutch barge moored in West India ... More

Leisure centre operators are facing crisis point without access to emergency government funding or support, the Local Government Association (LGA) has warned. The LGA has ... More