Circadian Trust

What Circadian Trust does

Circadian Trust is a registered charitable trust (Charity No. 1111467) operating five Active Lifestyle Centres across South Gloucestershire in the United Kingdom: Bradley Stoke, Kingswood, Longwell Green, Thornbury and Yate. The trust was established in 2004 in partnership with South Gloucestershire Council and operates under a leisure-trust model in which surpluses are reinvested into facilities and community services rather than distributed. Its core service offering comprises gym facilities equipped with Technogym cardiovascular and strength equipment, 25-metre swimming pools, group fitness classes (including Les Mills programming), Swim England-accredited Learn to Swim lessons, children's activities, venue hire, and community health initiatives. The Kingswood site has operated continuously since 1961, originally as Soundwell Baths, the West Country's first post-war public indoor pool.

The trust operates a unified digital infrastructure across its estate, anchored by the Leisure Hub online booking and membership platform (members.activecentres.org), with the Technogym mobile app providing member workout tracking and the HomePortal swimming lesson portal handling assessments and progress. Notable technology investments include the AI-powered Assisted Lifeguard Technology (ALT), which uses underwater and overhead cameras with anomaly detection to monitor swimmers and alert lifeguards in real time, and the Hydrohex Virtual Aquafit system launched at Thornbury in June 2026. Recent capital deployment includes a £2.4m investment programme across centres, a £650k Thornbury pool refurbishment (completed January 2025), a £140k Thornbury Wellbeing Studio, and a solar panel installation at Bradley Stoke generating 360,000+ kWh annually.

Circadian Trust monetises through a hybrid consumer and B2G model. Consumer revenue is generated via subscription memberships (Active Total and Lifestyle tiers with unlimited access and 8-day advance booking) and pay-as-you-go activity pricing (e.g., adult swim £6.20, junior/concessionary £4.30, Hydrohex £4.50, soft play £5.60, party hire £98.60). B2G revenue comes from NHS Clinical Commissioning Group contracts for the Healthy Lifestyle Referral Scheme and ESCAPE-pain courses, plus council-funded capital redevelopments. Ancillary streams include swimming lessons (Learn to Swim / Active Swimstars), Rookie Lifeguard (RLSS UK), venue hire, personal training, and the Inspire Membership programme providing free training access to GB athletes. The trust is accredited under the Good Employment Charter and Rest Less Age Inclusive Employer schemes, and Longwell Green holds one of only four Sport England Quest 'outstanding' ratings in England.

Name

Circadian Trust

Legal name

Circadian Trust

Website

https://activecentres.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

UK charitable trust operating five Active Lifestyle Centres across South Gloucestershire, delivering gym, swim, fitness classes, and NHS-commissioned health programmes to local residents, families, schools, and people with medical conditions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Leisure Services

NAICS

Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers (713940), Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers (71394)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Lifestyle & Habit Change Coaching (HSADAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Wellness Retreat Centers (Yoga, Meditation & Mindfulness) (THAGAMAB)

Keywords

• Leisure facilities
• Community fitness centres
• Swimming lessons
• Health referral programmes
• Charity leisure trust

Headquarters

HQ city

Bristol

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Subscriptions: Pre-paid Active Total or Lifestyle membership providing unlimited gym access, group exercise classes, public swimming sessions, and aquatic fitness classes with advanced booking capabilities up to 8 days ahead.
2. Pay-as-you-go Activities: Individual activity and session payments including adult swimming at £6.20, junior/concessionary swimming at £4.30, and various fitness classes charged per session.
3. Venue and Facility Hire: Meeting room hire, venue hire for events, and party bookings including pool parties and soft play party hire (Coral Cove) for up to 35 children at £98.60.
4. Healthy Lifestyle Referral Scheme: Commissioned by NHS Clinical Commissioning Group to deliver ESCAPE-pain courses and healthy lifestyle programmes with a small charge for participants.
5. Swimming Lessons: Learn to Swim programme following Swim England accredited framework, available for all ages from babies through to adults.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Circadian Trust operates five Active Lifestyle Centres across South Gloucestershire (Bradley Stoke, Kingswood, Longwell Green, Thornbury, Yate) delivering gym access with Technogym equipment, 25-metre swimming pools, group fitness classes, Swim England-accredited Learn to Swim lessons, children's activities (including Rookie Lifeguard and Coral Cove soft play), Wellbeing Studios, Hydrohex Virtual Aquafit, venue hire, and NHS-commissioned Healthy Lifestyle Referral Schemes. Revenue comes primarily from membership subscriptions and pay-as-you-go activity fees, with surpluses reinvested into community facilities under the charitable trust model.

Product overview

Circadian Trust operates a platform of five Active Lifestyle Centres across South Gloucestershire offering unified leisure and fitness services. The core offering comprises gym facilities (with Technogym equipment), swimming pools, group fitness classes, and Swim England-accredited Learn to Swim programmes. Add-on modules include specialist Wellbeing Studios for customers with mobility needs, the Inspire Membership programme for GB athletes, and health referral schemes (GP Referral, ESCAPE-pain). The leisure centres also provide children's activities including Rookie Lifeguard and Coral Cove soft play, venue hire facilities, and community health initiatives. All services are accessible through the Leisure Hub booking platform. The recent addition of Hydrohex Virtual Aquafit and Assisted Lifeguard Technology (AI-powered pool safety monitoring) demonstrates technology-enabled service expansion.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Inspire Membership Programme: A programme offering GB athletes free access to training facilities at Active Lifestyle Centres
• Healthy Lifestyle Referral Scheme
• Your Pace. Your Space
• Active Swimstars
• Rookies

Products and services

• Active Lifestyle Centres Five leisure facilities (Bradley Stoke, Kingswood, Longwell Green, Thornbury, Yate) operated across South Gloucestershire offering gym, swimming, fitness classes, and community health services to local residents.
• Gym Facilities Fully equipped gyms with Technogym cardiovascular and strength equipment, functional fitness areas, and Kinesis stations at selected centres, available to members and pay-as-you-go customers.
• Swimming Pools 25-metre pools at all five centres offering lane swimming, family sessions, and diving facilities (1m, 3m springboards and 5m platform) at Kingswood.
• Group Fitness Classes Group exercise programme including Les Mills classes, studio cycling, yoga, pilates, HIIT, aquafit, and dance fitness delivered across all centres.
• Learn to Swim Programme Swim England-accredited swimming lessons for all ages from babies through to adults, delivered by qualified Swim England or STA teachers, with progress tracking via HomePortal.
• Healthy Lifestyle GP Referral Scheme Doctor-referred programme for people with medical conditions, providing tailored exercise programmes with a 12-week minimum commitment and 6- and 12-week health reviews.
• Wellbeing Studios Specialist studios at Bradley Stoke, Thornbury, and Yate providing adapted fitness equipment for customers with different mobility levels, including BodyTone toning suite.
• Children's Activities Comprehensive children's services including swimming lessons, Rookie Lifeguard Programme (ages 8-12), soft play, Xheight Adventure Climb, and children's parties.
• Venue Hire Meeting rooms, conference facilities, and exhibition/event space available for hire, including newly developed space at Thornbury for corporate and community events.
• Hydrohex Virtual Aquafit Virtual aquafit system using poolside screen displays with five class styles (Cardio, Power, Move, Beat, HIIT) led by virtual coaches for low-impact water fitness.
• Coral Cove Soft Play Nautical-themed soft play experience for children aged 9 months to 8 years featuring climbing, slides, sensory area, and party hire facilities at Kingswood.
• Rookie Lifeguard Programme RLSS UK-approved programme teaching children aged 8-12 water rescue, survival, and emergency response skills through fun activities and competitions.

Quantifiable outcome

• £2bn+ returned to local economy annually by UK Leisure Trusts
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

AI capability3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NHS Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Commissioned by the Clinical Commissioning Group, NHS to deliver ESCAPE-pain courses (January 2022 - March 2023) and ongoing Healthy Lifestyle Referral Scheme for patients with medical conditions.
• South Gloucestershire CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership agreement with South Gloucestershire Council to operate five Active Lifestyle Centres across the region. Council provides funding for facility improvements including £3.6m Bradley Stoke redevelopment and £1.5m Longwell Green upgrade. Circadian Trust operates as a charitable trust reinvesting all revenue into community facilities.
• GP Surgeries in South GloucestershirecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorParticipating GP surgeries refer patients to the Healthy Lifestyle Referral Scheme. Patients must be registered with a participating GP practice in South Gloucestershire to join the scheme.
• Sirona care & healthminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInnovative scheme bringing together NHS physiotherapy clinics and leisure services. Thousands of people benefit from the partnership combining clinical and community wellness services.
• HFE (Health & Fitness Education)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with UK's leading provider of personal training courses to increase inclusivity in exercise opportunities. Collaboration on Level 3 Award in Programming and Supervising Exercise with Disabled Clients.
• TechnogymcoreTechnology or IntegrationEquipment supplier providing state-of-the-art fitness equipment across all centres. Official equipment supplier to 6 Olympic Games. Integrated with Technogym app and MyWellness Cloud for member tracking and programme access.
• Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS TrustminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew Horizons Mother and Baby Centre partnership providing FREE softplay vouchers for families accessing mental health services.
• Swim EnglandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLearn to Swim Programme following Swim England's accredited framework (over 80% of swimming lessons in England follow this programme). Swim England School Swimming and Water Safety Charter membership.
• RLSS UK (Royal Lifesaving Society UK)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRookie Lifeguard Programme delivery using RLSS UK framework from Bronze 1 to Gold 3. Assisted Lifeguard Technology developed in line with Royal Lifesaving Society guidelines.
• SOHO Coffee Co.minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCoffee outlet franchise operating at Yate Active Leisure Centre providing refreshments to centre visitors.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Active Nation: UK charity for sport operating leisure facilities and youth sport programmes. Comparable as a registered charity operating leisure centres with community health mission.
• Halo Leisure: Herefordshire-based leisure trust operating a small network of council-partnered leisure centres with gym, swim and fitness offerings. Comparable size and operating model to Circadian Trust.
• Fusion Lifestyle: Charitable leisure trust operating leisure and wellbeing facilities across the UK on behalf of local authorities. Very closely comparable on mission, membership offerings, and council partnership structure.
• Brio Leisure: Cheshire West & Chester leisure trust operating multiple leisure centres in council partnership. Comparable scale and operating model, with similar mix of fitness, swim, and community health programmes.
• Better (Greenwich Leisure Limited / GLL): UK's largest charitable social enterprise leisure trust operating public leisure facilities on behalf of local councils. Operates a network of 270+ centres with membership-based model and community focus, mirroring Circadian Trust's charitable trust, council partnership, and multi-centre structure.
• Everyone Active: Major UK leisure trust operating more than 200 leisure and cultural facilities in partnership with local councils. Directly comparable on business model (council-partnered leisure trust), product mix (gym/swim/classes), and community health partnerships.
• Places Leisure: UK leisure trust managing council leisure facilities with charitable/community objectives. Comparable on operating model, centre network, and NHS/social prescribing partnerships.

Broad incumbents

• David Lloyd Leisure: Premium UK health club operator offering gym, swim, family and racquets facilities. Comparable on product mix (especially pool and family programming) but operates commercially rather than as a charitable trust, and at much larger scale.
• Serco Leisure: Major international services provider with substantial UK leisure operations managing council leisure facilities. Comparable as a council-leisure operator though for-profit (rather than charitable) and much larger scale.

Emerging players

• The Gym Group: UK low-cost gym chain with national footprint offering 24/7 gym memberships at sub-£30/month prices. Overlaps with Circadian Trust on gym membership and facility-based fitness but competes on price and operates without pools/community programmes.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/circadiantrust
• Facebookfacebook.com/ActiveCentres
• Instagraminstagram.com/activelifestylecentres/?hl=en
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/circadian-trust

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Circadian Trust