Places Leisure

What Places Leisure does

Places Leisure (legal entity: Places for People Leisure Management Ltd.) is a UK non-profit leisure operator established in 1991 and headquartered in Camberley, operating as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Places for People Group, which holds over £5bn in assets and 230,000+ homes. The company manages 90-100+ leisure centres across the United Kingdom, offering swimming pools, gyms, sports halls, climbing walls, studios, and family facilities, with named flagship sites such as Aldershot Lido and Tooting Bec Lido. Its product portfolio is anchored on tiered membership subscriptions (Premium, Gym & Swim, Swim Only, Pay As You Go) plus supplementary revenue from commercial venue hire, swimming and sports courses (Swim Happy, gymnastics, trampolining, climbing), NPLQ lifeguard training, and café operations.

The company is structured as a social enterprise whose stated purpose is reinvesting into community health outcomes rather than shareholder returns, evidenced by reported social value of over £160m in FY 2024-25. Distribution is dual-channel: direct-to-consumer via the Places Leisure website, mobile app, and 90+ in-centre sales points; and enterprise, where local authority councils contract Places Leisure to operate public leisure facilities under long-tenure agreements (e.g., 15-year Fylde Council contract with £9.3m capital investment). GTM also includes corporate/Blue Light discount partnerships and a multi-referral member acquisition programme.

The technology stack centres on a leisure management platform (Gladstone Go) with mobile app integration, the SWIMTAG wearable for swim tracking, the CourseHub lesson-progress portal, and the Activate & Focus personalised gym programming system. Strategic partnerships span ukactive (Active Standard certification), Parkinson's UK, Women in Sport, and national governing bodies (British Gymnastics, Swim England, LTA), alongside operational suppliers Cafeology and phs Group. Customer segments range from individual members and families to schools, sports clubs, corporate clients, and local authorities, with FY24-25 reporting a 25.6% reduction in CO2e footprint against a 2019 baseline.

Name

Places Leisure

Legal name

Places for People Leisure Management Ltd.

Website

https://placesleisure.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Places Leisure is a UK non-profit leisure operator managing 90-100+ leisure centres nationwide as a subsidiary of Places for People Group, serving individual members, families, schools, sports clubs, and local authority councils through memberships, courses, commercial hire, and long-tenure public-sector management contracts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Camberley

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Membership Subscriptions: Recurring monthly or annual Direct Debit payments for gym access, group workout classes, swimming sessions, and court bookings. Membership types include Premium, Gym & Swim, Swim only, and Places (Pay As You Go) tiers.
2. Pay As You Go / Casual Usage: Non-members can book and pay for individual sessions, classes, and activities on a per-use basis through the app or website.
3. Commercial Facility Hire: Revenue from hiring sports halls, pools, courts, pitches, meeting rooms to schools, clubs, businesses, and community organisations under block booking or one-off event contracts.
4. Course Fees: Fees for swimming lessons, sports lessons, and intensive holiday courses taught by qualified instructors.
5. Food & Beverage: Café operations at centres serving drinks, snacks, and meals. Coffee supplied through Cafeology partnership.
6. Training & Qualifications: Revenue from NPLQ (National Pool Lifeguard Qualification) training courses offered to aspiring lifeguards.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Places Leisure operates a network of over 100 leisure centres across the UK on behalf of local authority partners, providing swimming pools, gyms, sports halls, climbing walls, and group exercise classes. The company sells membership subscriptions, Pay-As-You-Go access, swimming and sports lessons, commercial venue hire, and specialist health programmes (e.g., Parkinson's Move & Shout) to individual consumers, schools, clubs, businesses, and councils. As a social enterprise subsidiary of Places for People Group, it reinvests in community health outcomes, generating over £160m of social value in FY 2024-25.

Product overview

Places Leisure operates as a social enterprise managing over 100 leisure centres across the UK in partnership with local authorities. The offering is a unified leisure management platform combining physical facilities (swimming pools, gyms, sports halls, climbing walls, studios) with digital services (Places Leisure App, CourseHub portal, SWIMTAG tracking). Core products include membership tiers (Premium, Gym, Swim, Pay As You Go), swimming lessons under the Swim Happy programme following Swim England pathway, group fitness classes, and specialized programmes like Activate & Focus for gym users. Additional services encompass commercial venue hire, birthday parties, and community initiatives including Active Minds, Big Sister, Warm Hubs, and Parkinson's Move & Shout. The company generates social value exceeding £160m annually through its health and fitness operations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• BXGFit by Places Leisure: A fitness and gym brand operated within the Places Leisure network.

Products and services

• Membership Plans (Premium, Gym & Swim, Swim Only, Places Pay-As-You-Go, Virtual)
• Places Leisure Centres Network (90+ nationwide) Physical leisure facility network offering swimming pools, gyms, sports halls, courts, pitches, studios, climbing walls, and family amenities for community use.
• Swim Happy (Swimming Lessons) Structured swimming lessons following the Swim England Learn to Swim Pathway for children, adults, and holiday intensives, taught by qualified instructors.
• Group Workout Classes Studio fitness classes including group cycling, holistic classes, virtual on-screen sessions, and junior-specific classes accommodating all abilities.
• Sports Courses (Gymnastics, Trampolining, Tennis, Basketball, Badminton, Football, Cricket, Fencing, Squash, Rugby, Netball, Pickleball, MMA) Structured coaching courses across multiple sports developed with national governing bodies such as British Gymnastics and the Lawn Tennis Association.
• Climbing Courses Climbing instruction delivered by certified instructors at indoor climbing walls and Clip n Climb facilities for children and adults.
• Commercial Hire Services Hire of sports halls, courts, pitches, pools, and meeting rooms to schools, clubs, businesses, and community organisations on a block-booking or one-off event basis.
• Local Authority Leisure Partnership Contracts Long-term operating and investment contracts with councils (e.g., 15-year Fylde Council deal worth £9.3m) to manage, modernise, and reinvest in public leisure facilities.
• Birthday Parties Children's birthday party packages hosted at leisure centres with activity-led formats.
• Café and Food & Beverage Operations Café operations at centres serving drinks, snacks, and meals with coffee supplied through the Cafeology partnership.
• National Pool Lifeguard Qualification (NPLQ) Training RLSS UK lifeguard qualification courses covering pool rescue, lifeguarding theory, first aid, and CPR, leading to an internationally recognised qualification.
• Places Leisure App Free mobile app for members to manage bookings, access virtual workouts, digital fitness content, news, blogs, and QR code check-in across all centres.
• SWIMTAG Wearable Swimming Tracker Wearable technology that tracks swimming progress, lengths, and timings in the pool, available free to all members.
• CourseHub Course Portal Online portal used to track swimming and sports lesson progress, view achievements, and manage lesson progression, auto-registering online joiners.
• Activate & Focus Programme Gym programme included in membership that uses digital technology to deliver personalised programming with one-to-one instructor support.
• Parkinson's Move & Shout Programme 12-week specialist physical activity programme for individuals with Parkinson's, delivered with Parkinson's UK, including group exercise, table tennis, gym sessions, and complimentary gym memberships.
• Big Sister Project (with Women in Sport) Community initiative with Women in Sport providing mentors and free memberships to support girls' engagement in sport and physical activity.
• Forever Active (Active Older Adults) Fitness programme tailored for active older adults, available at select centres.
• Places Wellness (Specialist Health Classes) Health and wellbeing services at select centres, including specialist classes for specific health conditions.

Quantifiable outcome

• £160m+ social value generated in FY 2024-25
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ukactivecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlaces Leisure certified with The Active Standard through partnership with ukactive, demonstrating commitment to quality health and wellbeing service delivery.
• Parkinson's UKcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration delivering specialised 12-week physical activity programmes for individuals with Parkinson's, including free gym memberships and exercise prescription from Level 3 instructors.
• Women in Sport (Big Sister Project)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership supporting the Big Sister initiative providing free memberships and mentorship to help girls engage in sport and physical activity.
• CafeologyminorOthersSustainable coffee supplier founded in 2003, based in Sheffield. Provides Fairtrade-certified, ethically sourced coffee to café operations at centres.
• phs GroupminorOthersWaste management partner through their LifeCycle Strategy, diverting 95% of hygiene waste away from landfill to energy recovery sites across the UK.
• Fylde CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner£9.3m investment partnership for modernising and redeveloping St Annes Pool and Kirkham Baths under a 15-year contract. Council expects to save over £600,000.
• Local Authorities (Various)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership model where local authorities contract Places Leisure to operate, modernise, and maintain public leisure facilities on their behalf.
• National Governing Bodies (British Gymnastics, Swim England, LTA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProgrammes developed and quality assured by national governing bodies including British Gymnastics (gymnastics, trampolining), Swim England (swimming lessons), and Lawn Tennis Association (tennis).

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Everyone Active: Everyone Active operates 200+ leisure centres in the UK under contracts with local authorities, sharing Places Leisure's outsourced-leisure model, multi-activity centre offering, and public-sector partnership approach.
• The Gym Group: The Gym Group is a UK low-cost gym chain with 240+ sites, competing with Places Leisure for individual membership subscribers in the UK fitness market on price and convenience.
• David Lloyd Leisure: David Lloyd Leisure operates 100+ premium UK health and racquets clubs, comparable to Places Leisure's higher-end leisure centre offerings for families seeking full-service club experiences.
• PureGym: PureGym is one of the UK's largest low-cost gym operators with 600+ sites, a direct competitor for price-sensitive fitness members and overlapping with Places Leisure's gym and swim subscription offerings.
• Active Nation: Active Nation is a UK charity operating leisure facilities for the public sector, comparable to Places Leisure's social-enterprise model and community-fitness approach in non-urban communities.
• Nuffield Health: Nuffield Health combines fitness clubs with healthcare services in the UK, providing a comparable mix of premium leisure and wellness offerings that overlaps with Places Leisure's family and health-focused centres.
• Fusion Lifestyle: Fusion Lifestyle operates leisure and cultural facilities across the UK on behalf of local authorities, directly comparable to Places Leisure's outsourced management of community fitness and recreation infrastructure.
• Serco Leisure: Serco operates public leisure facilities in the UK on behalf of local authority clients as part of its broader public services portfolio — comparable as a contract leisure operator serving the same community fitness customers as Places Leisure.
• GLL (Better): GLL operates the Better brand, one of the UK's largest charitable leisure operators running 240+ leisure and cultural facilities on behalf of local authorities — closely comparable to Places Leisure's council-contract operating model, social-enterprise structure, and community-fitness focus.

Emerging players

• énergie Fitness: énergie operates a global fitness franchise with a meaningful UK presence, competing for individual gym memberships and partially overlapping with Places Leisure's broader fitness subscription offerings in selected geographies.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/placesleisure
• Facebookfacebook.com/placesleisure
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/places-for-people-leisure

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Places Leisure