Places Leisure Partner Newsletter - April 2024

An award-winning organisation

Places Leisure won three awards at one of the most respectable award nights in the leisure industry.

The most recent uk active Awards were held in Leeds and saw the country’s biggest leisure operators come together and celebrate the past years’ achievements. Having been shortlisted for four awards, we were set to leave highly decorated.

Winning Organisation of the Year meant that the judges recognised us to have the highest level of performance, impact, and sustainability out of all the organisations shortlisted. It is a great honour to win this award, and it wouldn’t be possible without the support from our stakeholders, communities, colleagues, and customers, so thank you!

We’re so proud to call ourselves an awardwinning organisation, solidifying our strategy of becoming the UK’s leading health and wellbeing enabler, creating active places and healthy people for communities to thrive.

Taking home three wins, we were the biggest winners on the night, with the most noticeable victories in the Equality, Diversity, & Inclusion Award for the Big Sister Project, and of course, winning Organisation of the Year.

Social Value impact

At the beginning of 2023, we revised the Places Leisure strategy. Now, seeking to establish Places Leisure as the UK’s leading health and wellbeing enabler, we have demanded a greater focus on delivery for and in our communities. Working with partners and clients in a collaborative and integrated approach, the aim is for

customers to learn about health and wellbeing, like the benefits, and adopt the behaviours to live a healthier lifestyle.

Our strategy set an aspiration of creating more than £200million in social value each financial year. So far, this financial year, we have totalled £132 million of social value.

Total social value:

£132,737,992

Physical & mental health

£24,306,421

£

Subjective wellbeing Individual development

73,741,404

£982,052

Social & Comm dev

£33,696,591

The key social value indicators are split between physical and mental health, subjective wellbeing, individual development and social and community development.

Growing our Places Leisure community

This year we will be welcoming both the Spelthorne and Northumberland contracts to the Places Leisure community.

In November, we were awarded the Spelthorne (Surrey) Leisure Management co ntract on a 10-year term from summer 2024, following a competitive procurement process. The new contract includes the operation of the existing Sunbury Leisure Centre and the new £50m Spelthorne Leisure Centre, located in Staines-upon-Thames, which is due to open this summer.

The new leisure centre will be one of the world’s most advanced, energy efficient leisure centres. Utilising ‘Passivhaus’ technology, it will help the centre use 70% less energy than a typical leisure facility and will add £10m per annum of social value. This adds to our commitment to improve our green credentials and is a great acquisition for the company more widely.

The new leisure centre will be one of the world’s most advanced, energy efficient leisure centres. Utilising ‘Passivhaus’ technology, it will help the centre use 70% less energy than a typical leisure facility

Ponteland Leisure Centre, Northumberland

This is wholly aligned with our sustainability target of being net zero by 2035 and endorses our credentials as being the UK’s leading social enterprise. We are thrilled and delighted to be awarded this prestigious contract and look forward to welcoming a new community into the wider Places for People family from 2024.

The good news doesn’t end there, we have taken on the Northumberland Leisure Management contract on a 10-year term, following a competitive procurement process. The new contract includes the operation of ten facilities across the breadth of the County.

It is always a pleasure to expand our offerings to new communities and form new relationships with local authorities.

The good news doesn’t end there, this April we have taken on the Northumberland Leisure Management contract on a 10-year term

Spelthorne Leisure Centre

Our Big Colleague Survey results

The Big Colleague Survey is an anonymous and confidential annual employee survey, giving our colleagues the opportunity to share their honest opinions to help us develop and grow as a company.

This year 94% of leisure colleagues completed the survey, which is our highest participation rate yet. Not only did more people respond to the survey, but we either increased or remained the same on all questions compared to last year.

The Big Colleague Survey is hugely important, it allows us to hear from our colleagues and understand the mindset of our Community. Using the results, we’re able to create positive change and ensure Places Leisure is an even better place to work.

Every year, we collate an Action Plan by listening to what has been said, both locally and centrally. This allows us to identify any key themes, plan our next steps and ensure any changes made are in our colleagues’ best interests.

Taking everything into account, I would say this is a great place to work

I would strongly recommend my organization to friends and family as a great place to work

People here are willing to give extra to get the job done

I feel I make a difference here

I want to work here for a long time

I’m proud to tell others I work here

When I look at what we accomplish, I feel a sense of pride

My work has special meaning: it’s not ‘just a job’

Taking everything into account, I would say this is a great place to work

People here are willing to give extra to get the job done

I’m proud to tell others I work here

My work has special meaning: it’s not ‘just a job’

Recognising our colleagues

At Places Leisure, we want to recognise all our colleagues who play such an integral part in contributing to our success. Over the past year, we have introduced various recognition schemes to ensure our colleagues feel empowered and motivated.

Star Awards

The Star Awards are a way for every Places for People and Places Leisure colleague to recognise those who go above and beyond by nominating them for a Star Award. We have a category for each of our People Promises, a judging panel meet every four months to review every nomination and pick their winners.

Managers Awards

Following on from our Star Award recognition programme, the Manager Awards are a way of thanking our People. We want to celebrate success and celebrate our colleagues when they have done a great job. Whether that be a colleague who has gone out of their way to help a customer in an extraordinary situation or going above and beyond their day-to-day role, we want to recognise them in a way that feels meaningful.

The Manager Awards are hosted on our internal recognition platform. Each manager is given a budget, they can reward any colleague within Places for People using their set budget.

Our People Promises

Our aim is to create a culture which empowers our employees, demonstrating that everyone is vital and of equal importance. We know that investment in our people will lead to an engaged workforce. Working in collaboration with Places for People, we have launched our People Promises earlier this year. As we strive to create and support thriving communities across the UK, these are the promises we’ve made to our colleagues, describing the type of Community we create.

We are Places for People Leisure. We are Community

This is what we stand for and this is how we roll. When you’re in our Community, this is what you sign up to.

Do The Right Thing, Always.

We always aim to do the right thing for our Customers, for our Communities, for each other.

What is the right thing? Never walking by. Owning it. Picking up the litter. Doing that bit extra. Helping. Giving. Being transparent. Making choices for the right reasons. Never letting anyone down, Running through the line.

We know what the right thing is because it is in our DNA. It is who we are.

Be Respectful, Earn Respect.

Fired Up, Ready To Grow.

We have a drive to improve and make things easier. We do something new, and something better, every day. We have a thirst to learn. We’re curious.

We take care of our precious resources so we can reinvest them wisely. We’re bold, we’re adaptable. We’re passionate about thriving communities.

We keep our promises. We’re not scared to admit we’re wrong. We’re open, honest, humble. We’ll always listen, we’re always accessible.

We are respectful, and we respectfully challenge and question. We trust each other and in turn are trusted.

We recognise, appreciate, and celebrate each other.

We s ay thank you, a lot.

Enjoy Work.

One Community. Our differences make us who we are, our shared mission makes us different.

In our inclusive community everyone is welcome, everyone is important, everyone is supported, and everyone can thrive.

Work can be hard, but we have a very special role to play - to be a force for good for our customers, for our communities, and for our society.

That’s why we enjoy what we do.

It’s a rare opportunity we’ve been given, we never take it for granted.

Our new Places

In February we were so pleased to launch our brand-new Places Leisure app. We’ve been working hard to develop an app that has everything our Customers need at the touch of a button. The new functionality ensures our customer journey is efficient and easy to navigate, whilst giving a premium service. The new app includes:

• Effortless booking s ystems to make and manage bookings in a few simple steps.

• E asy access to their membership card, ensuring access to our centres i s user-friendly.

• Access to Places Tracker and SWIMTAG for bespoke programmes, pairing to their wearables, and tracking progress.

• Access to hundreds of free virtual workouts: ou r Virtual Studio is home to on demand workouts from Synergy Dance, RT24, Stages Cycles, Funk Fit, Big Sister and more! We’ve provided something for every level, ability, and mood.

• Access to Course Hub for all course i nformation and badges.

• In-app notifications for those all-important announcements.

Since February, we have had over 123,000 downloads and an abundance of positive feedback form our Customers.

It is far slicker, much easier to navigate through the options and by far much more user-friendly than the previous app.

Booking classes is much easier and syncing to calendar helps as a reminder.

The app refresh makes it so much easier to locate your favourite activities, sports or courts.

New app is amazing. Runs a lot faster and easier!

reat app. Everything is in one place and organised nicely.

Project Our award-winning

Working with our partners, Women In Sport, The Places Foundation and Hey Girl, we launched our Big Sister Project back in 2022. The Project addresses the entrenched barriers girls face in leading healthy lifestyles, designed “by girls, for girls” to provide opportunities for all to access the lifelong benefits of physical activity.

Research indicates that the four main barriers for girls trying to maintain active lifestyles include economic exclusion, body confidence, period poverty and safety. The Big Sister Project tackles these barriers through an inclusive, community-driven approach. The programme offers a supportive network of all-female ‘Big Sisters’ and Coaches, delivering free exercise sessions, gym memberships and online content, and free period products, to help girls feel confident participating in sport. Places Leisure saw over 3,200 girls sign up for a free Big Sister memberships and over 55,500 visits to our participating centres. The Project takes an innovative and community-centred approach to changing lives through physical activity.

In October, The Big Sister Project was recognised at one of the leisure industries

most prestigious awards, winning the Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Award at the ukactive Awards. The Project was noticed for its ability to recognise the key transitional moments for girls in their teenage years, offering them the chance to realise the benefits of physical activity on their own terms.

We exceeded all targets:

Provide 24,000 girl s with free information regarding puberty and free period products.

For 3,150 girls to participate in activity.

To provide 2,700 girls with free ‘Big Sister’ membership at our centres.

For 5,400 girls to use our bespoke content on the Big Sister channel of our Places Leisure App.

Performance:

55,509 visits to participating leisure centres from Big Sister members.

19,380 girls supported through the availability of free period products.

3,267 girls using Big Sister gym memberships.

269 girls actively using Places Leisure App resources.

O

ver 2,000 girls over participating in Big Sister activities.

Over 14,200 engaged through community partnerships with over 70 organisations and 61 schools.

3,150

3,150

14,200

55,509

24,000

3,150

5,400

19,380

Our rehabilitation scheme in Sandwell

In partnership with Cranstoun, Places Leisure have co-produced a physical activity pathway to support those in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction, providing free 12-week Premium memberships to our West Bromwich Leisure Centre. Working closely with Cranstoun’s Key Worker team, the project has been designed to support service users in making positive steps towards improving their health and wellbeing, with continuous support provided throughout the intervention by our Fitness Team.

Our innovative Drug and Alcohol Recovery Project has successfully engaged a highly vulnerable sector of the community at risk of isolation and poor health outcomes. Conducted confidentially to prevent further stigmatisation, the project was oversubscribed with upwards of 350 referrals. Of these, 205 participants were onboarded, meeting 100% of our target in under 80% of the time. This is particularly significant

Prostate Cancer UK

This year we’ve seen many commendable partnerships come to fruition, from local community wellness providers to nationwide charities. We’re proud to have joined forces with Prostate Cancer UK. This partnership means we can raise greater awareness of prostate cancer and break the stigma, encouraging those who visit our centres to book in with their GP.

More than 52,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year on average, and that’s a number we want to help reduce. March was Prostate Cancer Awareness Month; throughout the month we’ve been breaking the stigma and encouraging men to visit their GP if they notice any symptoms. Posters and digital assets from Prostate Cancer UK have been displayed across each of our centres, illustrating the signs and symptoms of prostate cancer. The posters also feature a QR code that signposts visitors to Prostate Cancer UK’s online risk checker

given the normal barriers to successful engagement of this demographic.

Our 12-week intervention offers those in recovery the opportunity to transform their lives, develop healthy habits and experience social connection. It is about more than just physical activity. The project provides the opportunity for participants to learn new skills, meet new people and build a healthier life that does not revolve around addiction. To ensure adequate support and monitor progress, our Fitness Team provide 3 and 6-week reviews. Users also complete sessions with Cranstoun’s Key Workers using the Treatment Outcome Profiles (TOPs) tool.

Due to the success of the initial Recovery Project, both Cranstoun and Sandwell Council Public Health departments have been supportive of our re-application for funding to replicate and expand the project.

At Places Leisure, we know the importance of working with different charities to highlight important health-related information that can support our communities. Improving education and promoting better action around cancer overall is vital to reduce its devastating impact.

We are One CommunityPlaces for People

We are Places for People, the UK’s leading Social Enterprise. We change lives by creating and supporting thriving Communities.

Our business consists of complementary companies that are market leaders in homes and Communities, regeneration and development, investment management, property management and leisure.

We own or manage more than 240,000 properties that are the homes to around 500,000 Customers right across the UK.

We operate 100 leisure facilities that support the health and wellbeing of our Customers with an average of 1.9m visits a month.

Using the power of partnership and working collaboratively, almost 10,500 colleagues in more than 20 specialist companies create Communities and provide People with opportunities and choice in a way that few organisations can match.

What sets us apart from other organisations, is that beyond providing housing or leisure opportunities, we have a genuine commitment to improving people’s lives and Communities as a whole. Through our social impact work, we use our precious resources to make a real and lasting difference through schemes that offer support with employment, health and wellbeing, finances, homelessness prevention and more. In 2022, our social impact work delivered £272 million in wellbeing value to Communities and £300 million in 2023.

Manage more than

240,000 Properties

Social impact work delivered

£300 million in 2023

For more information on the wider services provided by Places for People, please visit www.placesforpeople.co.uk or contact our Business Development Director, Dan Walker, at DanWalker@pfpleisure.org

Creating active places and healthy people for communities to thrive

For media enquiries, please contact your Contract Manager or email Press.Enquiries@PlacesforPeople.co.uk.

Places Leisure placesleisure.org

Places for People placesforpeople.co.uk