We hope you and your teams have had a busy and successful winter across your facilities! As spring is approaching, we hope you are looking forward to what’s to come and are making sure to take care of yourselves along the way.
Within this edition of the Right Track, we have included some general updates on our products and online platforms, along with the introduction of our new security products which are due to launch this autumn. We also have included a special feature on our very own Jean Rae, who celebrates 50 years of working in leisure this year.
Preparing for Martyn’s Law
New Protective Security Support Coming Soon
Over the coming months we will be introducing a new range of protective security services designed to support organisations preparing for the upcoming Protect Duty, commonly referred to as Martyn’s Law. The legislation will introduce new expectations for many premises and venues to consider how they prepare for and respond to terrorism-related risks. While the Home Office and SIA have not yet confirmed all final implementation details, we are already developing practical resources to help organisations prepare early and approach the requirements with confidence.
These services are being developed to sit alongside our existing Quality Management System (QMS) procedures and wider operational guidance already used by many of our clients. Alongside supporting compliance with the Protect Duty, the new resources will help organisations strengthen their wider protective security arrangements, including day-to-day operational security management and clear procedures for
P1. Preparing for Martyn’s Law
P2. Updates to QMS and Quest
P3. Changes to the Food Safety Audit
P4. Risk Ratings in Stitch
responding to incidents or emergencies. This will include support curating bespoke procedures, security planning documentation, training, and on-site support days focused on preparedness, staff awareness, operational readiness and compliance.
We are making a significant investment in developing these services to ensure they are proportionate, practical and aligned with current good practice. Our aim is to provide clear, defensible guidance that helps organisations understand what applies to them, implement effective arrangements, and maintain confidence over time.
As part of this work, we would welcome your views on the types of support that would be most valuable to your organisation. If you have a few minutes, please complete the short survey below to help shape the services we introduce.
SurveyProtective Security Client Survey – Fill in form
P5. Training updates
P6. StaffMIS/The Right Place
P7. HR Updates
P7. Welcome to the team!
P8. Jean Rae, 50 years in Leisure
Q1 2026 Updates to the Right Directions Quality Management System
A number of procedures, forms and RD Docs have been updated across the following areas of the QMS - Customers, Health & Safety, Operations, Family Activities and Finance. These updates are now live on The Right Place platform, where clients can access the latest versions at any time. The changes strengthen clarity, compliance, and operational consistency across all service areas.
Clients can view the full Q1 Summary of Changes and access each updated document directly from the platform’s document library.
We operate a monthly review cycle, during which a proportion of our procedures, forms and RD Docs are updated and released. To ensure you remain aligned with the latest requirements, please review the Summary of Changes on The Right Place frequently.
New & updated RD-Docs available on The Right Place
• Small unmanned aircraft (Drones)
• Electricity – Fixed Electrical Testing
• • Putting on (donning) and taking off (doffing) PPE and RPE
• Emergency Bleed Kits
Updates on the new Quest
As from January 2026, Quest have been operating two complementary programmes: Quest for Facilities and Quest Active Wellbeing Assessment, both designed to help organisations demonstrate value, improve services, and deliver measurable impact.
If you would like some more information, please visit our website, https://questaward.org, or call our office on 01582 840078.
Food Safety Audit changes
We are updating the food safety audit questions to streamline the audit process and make assessments clearer and more efficient. There are no new requirements being introduced. Several existing questions have been combined to reduce duplication while still covering the same compliance standards.
Below are some examples:
• Staff training will now be assessed through two consolidated questions that encompass all previous training checks. To be compliant, each element within those questions will need to be met. Auditors will also speak with staff to confirm their understanding of the food safety manual and key procedures, ensuring knowledge is applied in day-to-day operations.
• We will check to see that a kitchen risk assessment is in place, along with at least two additional assessments covering higher-risk equipment such as pizza ovens, deep-fat fryers, convection ovens, or dishwashers. This list is not exhaustive, and auditors
may select other types of equipment.
• Temperature monitoring will continue to require the use of a calibrated probe for fridges, freezers, and display cabinets.
• During the audit, three menu items will be checked against the allergen matrix to confirm accuracy and compliance. Where applicable, menus will also be reviewed to ensure energy content information and recommended daily intake guidance are clearly displayed.
• The daily, weekly, and monthly cleaning check sheets have been merged into a single audit question. All sections must be completed to demonstrate full compliance.
If you have any questions or are interested in having food safety audits, please do not hesitate to email us on clientservices@ rightdirections.co.uk or call the office on 01582 840098.
Risk Ratings in Stitch
We hope you are enjoying the new Stitch platform and are finding the updated features useful.
If you are using the risk assessment module, you may have noticed that the risk rating system has changed from a 5 x 5 matrix to a simpler Low, Medium, High rating scale.
This change was introduced because many clients found the 5 x 5 matrix difficult to apply consistently, which sometimes resulted in risks being scored incorrectly or the matrix not being used at all. We therefore felt that a Low, Medium, High rating would be more straightforward and easier to interpret.
It is also worth noting that there is no legal requirement to formally ‘rate’ risks within a risk assessment. For example, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) does not use a numerical rating system in the sample risk assessments available on its website.
For reference, the 5 x 5 matrix is shown below:
When existing risk assessments were migrated to the new platform, their ratings were automatically converted as follows:
• 1–6 = Low
• 8–12 = Medium
• 15–25 = High
However, we have received feedback from some clients who would prefer to continue to use the original 5 x 5 matrix. With this in mind, we are currently exploring our options with the software developers, however, if you have any feedback on the new style of risk ratings and platform (both positive and improvements), then please let us know.
It is great to receive feedback on the new platform, and we will continue working to improve Stitch wherever possible.
If you have any further comments or suggestions, please contact us at Stitch@rightdirections.co.uk.
How are you finding the NEW Stitch?
Let us know your feedback: stitch@rightdirections.co.uk
If you’d like to know more about the NEW Stitch, click the link below and we’ll show you how it could benefit your organisation! https://forms.office.com/e/Hab0mWxzUC
If you are a current Stitch user and want to use Stitch to its full potential, then register onto our monthly Stitch training session, which occurs on the last Monday of each month! https://rightdirections.co.uk/webinars/understanding-stitch-webinar/
Face to Face & Online Training
Unlimited access to On-Demand training
Did you know that instead of buying individual licences for your team members, you can also look to purchase 12 months of unlimited access for your whole team? This is an extremely cost-effective method of providing our full suite of On Demand training to your whole teams.
If you are interested in finding out more about the cost and process of this, then please email us at: training@ rightdirections.co.uk
Important changes to CPR
In late 2025, the European Resuscitation Council (ERC) published revised guidelines on resuscitation and first aid. The Resuscitation Council UK (RCUK) guidelines have been adapted from the ERC guidelines and are tailored specifically into clinical practice in the UK.
Face-to-face First Aid courses, have made an optional free online learning module available for candidates. The module explains the changes; checks knowledge and successful candidates will be issued a certificate of completion. This will be available in qualification and award holders’ RLSS UK account from Wednesday 1st April 2026
The Right Place
Have you visited the Right Place? It’s the home to all of our safety snippets, webinars, newsletters and industry updates. If your organisation subscribes to our procedures, your organisation lead will also be able to view and download the relevant templates and forms.
If you haven’t accessed the Right Place before, then please let us know, so that we can set you up with an account. Just drop us a line: StaffMIS@rightdirections.co.uk How do you currently complete your tasks and checks around your facilities? Do you use out of date spreadsheets or rely on paper?
StaffMIS streamlines day to day operations by bringing all tasks and checks, and compliance into one simple platform. Giving the right people the right access, and ensuring real time visibility, accountability and efficiency. If you would like to book a demo to explore StaffMIS’ functionalities further, please do so here:
https://forms.office.com/e/Hab0mWxzUC
Changes to employment law
There has recently been an update to UK employment law, in which changes are being implemented this April and also this October.
For more information, please email info@rightdirections.co.uk
Welcome...
Kerri, Andy and James!
We have recently welcomed Kerri, Andy and James into our team!
We are so pleased to have them join us, and we hope that they have enjoyed the start of their time within the team.
Kerri Lamont Product Development Manager
Andy Jones Head of IT
James Bliss Quality Support Manager & Food Safety Auditor
Celebrating Jean Rae’s 50 years in Leisure!
I’ve worked in Leisure for over 50 years, so much happened I don’t know how to put it all down in a couple of pages”
I left school at 16 wanting to be an accountant – however all the courses were full. While waiting for a space to open up, I applied to Glasgow Corporation for a job. The choice was between finance or a post at Bellahouston Sports Centre.
I attended an interview at Bellahouston Sports Centre, the first sports centre to open in Scotland, and that’s where I got my start in leisure.
It was great to be involved with something new. I learned so much in the 6 years I worked there by taking on every task I could: managing the booking programme, helping the clubs and groups, assisting at the local or major national competitions held at the centre, and working with junior and disability sports groups. I had the opportunity to try every sport/ activity I could in my own time. I tried Squash, Badminton, Table Tennis, Volleyball, Fencing, Archery, Trampolining, Keep Fit classes (group exercises) and even gymnastics warm-ups.
I ended up joining the fencing club, fencing in competitions across the UK and helping to run any competitions held in the area. I attended a course at Inverclyde National Sports Centre and qualified as a Fencing Coach. I also trained as a Keep Fit and Gym Instructor and helped coach in both these areas.
I loved working there and I met so many lovely people.
When I had been working at the centre for 6 years, there was a reorganisation, and I was offered the Assistant Manager’s position at James Murray Sports Centre, Baillieston. At 22, I was one of the first women in a management position in Scotland.
James Murray was a smaller centre than Bellahouston and had a sports hall, function hall, gym, squash court, meeting room, sauna and a café. I still remember the kids turning up for the Irish Dancing on a Sunday – as soon as they came through the entrance door, they started dancing along the corridor to the function hall, with their arms straight by their side and their shoes clacking – a very noisy entrance. I’d kept up with my favourite activities
I started in Bellahouston and started a women’s ‘Keep Fit’ class using the gym and the hall for an exercise to the current hits music, which was a great success with between 30 and 50 women attending each week.
I started a fencing club for children 12 years and up, which grew and grew. I wanted this to be open to all, so we undertook fundraising so that the children and parents didn’t need to pay for equipment, nor entry or travel to competitions. We went all over the country, taking part, sometimes winning and always having fun.
Amongst all this, I got married, gained a great step-daughter, achieved my Diploma in Management Studies, fenced in competitions (even winning a few!), and passed my driving test. A lot in just 4 years!
My next job was Manager of Helenvale Park, an astroturf outdoor athletic and football park, next to Celtic Football Park. I ended up having a few stern discussions with the Celtic Managers on how they couldn’t just turn up and use the pitch. On the athletics side, we had athletics days for children, bringing up some great athletes of the time, like Alan Pascoe, the famous hurdler at the time.
Two years later, I took a 5-year break, had two lovely boys, kept the fencing club going, and trained a few British champions at the Under 16 and Under 18 level. I started some Keep Fit classes at local venues and ended up out every night of the week and some afternoons. Another really exciting time of meeting new people, especially the ladies at the Keep Fit who were fun-loving, interesting people, and I made some lifelong friends.
I returned to work as an Assistant Manager in Linwood Sports Centre, a large centre with an eight-court hall, gym, squash courts and an outdoor synthetic pitch (replaced with a new, bigger and more modern centre now). I improved the children’s weekend club, increasing the attendance and the participation in the exercise classes. A run-of-the-mill job, but as it was shift work, it suited family life at the time.
I had a big move in 1990 to Manager at Montrose Sports Centre, which was managed by Tayside Regional Council. I reported to the Rector at the Montrose Academy, who was ahead of his time in so many ways and strongly believed in working with the community.
As well as being responsible for the management of the centre, I worked
closely with Montrose Academy to ensure that the PE timetable was met and gave the pupils the opportunity to try different activities like yoga, archery and fencing.
I looked at what activities could be developed at the centre and worked to be able to accommodate this, leading to the same old problem: Too many participants and not enough coaches. So I worked with my team, helping them to get qualified to take classes, just like I had when I was starting out.
Squash was very popular at Montrose Sports Centre, with an excellent club that ran at least 5 ladies’ and 5 men’s teams playing in the regional leagues. Junior Squash was being promoted in the early 90’s, so I got my Junior Squash Coaching Certificate (learning squash in Bellahouston came good) and started a junior squash club. It was popular, with lots of schoolchildren joining, all of them enjoying it and keen to play. I keep saying it, but it was great fun to work with these children.
I took up playing squash again for fun but also entered the leagues and played in the teams – not the first team, but as captain of the third team and in my second year, we won the third league!
I qualified as a Gym Joeys coach along with some of the other staff at the centre. I didn’t coach the classes all the time, but it was great to do it now and again, as it was good fun.
With new activities and some promotion, the school holiday programmes went from having 20 children a day to over 100 a day. It was so good to see so many children taking part and enjoying activities. And yes, we had to bring in more staff and helpers: we were making a big difference to the local community.
A major addition to the centre was the Angus Sports Medicine Centre, which was set up in partnership with the local sports council and physiotherapists.
The Regional and District councils merged in 1996, meaning big changes. Three centres from the regional and six centres from the District Council were brought under one council. I was given the post of temporary Area Manager for one year managing five facilities, two in Montrose, two in Forfar and one in Brechin. If that wasn’t enough, in the three years that this transition was happening, I attended Aberdeen University two nights a week, funding myself, and gained a Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA).
The reorganisation ended, and three areas were set up. I was given the position of Area Manager, Arbroath area. I oversaw three leisure facilities, two high school pools and sports halls, a caravan park and the outdoor recreations which opened over the summer.
In 1998, I attended a Seminar on Quest, the Quality Improvement Scheme for the Sport and Leisure industry in the UK. I was really impressed and saw this as a great opportunity towards consistent service throughout the centres in Angus and volunteered to lead the implementation of Quest for all the leisure centres in the county.
I applied for and became a Quest Assessor in 1999, carrying out my first assessment that year. I was and am passionate about the Quest Scheme and really believe it makes a difference. I carried out many Quest assessments in my own time across Scotland, also giving talks to other leisure departments about Quest and what it was about.
In 1999, I was offered the position of Recreation Manager, Leisure Management
Service, encompassing all nine main facilities in Angus.
It was hard work and not always easy to get managers and staff to see the benefits, however over the next three years things did improve:
- Managers improved their business planning and marketing skills
- A Quality Management System was put in place for all areas for running leisure facilities.
- A culture of continuous improvement started.
In 2001, all facilities were registered with the Quest Quality Scheme, with three gaining Highly Commended in 2004, showing our efforts were rewarded.
I took on many challenges. My team and I developed the NHS Exercise by Prescription scheme in the Montrose area, in conjunction with the local medical centre and put in the systems to monitor it. It was so successful that it was rolled out to other areas. We created a lifeguard working group to enhance training standards and delivery of the service. We focused on child protection, working with many different groups to ensure safety. I became a member of the corporate Equal Opportunity Group and the Angus Well Being Group.
In 2004, I successfully gained the post of Principal Corporate Planning Officer with a remit to deliver and manage a programme of change across the council. I became an EFQM Assessor, an Investor in People Reviewer and carried out work with the Customer Excellence Scheme. Using the Public Sector Improvement Framework (based on EFQM), I worked with Social Work and Housing to develop and implement improvement plans for their departments.
Jean – 50 years in Leisure!
Other areas of work included working with the media section of the council to develop the Angus Excellence Awards where I met great staff and had fun working with them. The awards were successfully held from 2007 to 2010.
I carried out many Quest Assessments across the whole of the UK, and visited many areas including the Isle of Man, Orkney, Shetland, most counties in Scotland, many areas around Manchester as well as areas in and around London. I was one of the Regional Assessors and held meetings for the assessors in Scotland and mentored many of the Sottish assessors.
If I’m truthful, although the work as a Principal Corporate Planning Officer was different, I missed the vibrancy and dynamics of the leisure industry. In 2010, I was given the opportunity to take early retirement, and it seemed like a good idea as I could keep working with Quest, which aligned better with my passions. I signed the papers in June only to find out the next week that the company managing Quest on behalf of Sport England had gone into administration. I decided to go ahead with retiring from my full-time job anyway.
Right Directions took over the management of the scheme and, as well as being kept on the list as a Quest Assessor, I was given the opportunity to do proof reading. During the next seven years, I carried out many Quest assessments and travelled all over the country. I also learned about the many other strands of work that Right Directions carried out.
I felt privileged to visit so many leisure facilities and meet lots of interesting people.
Then Covid hit. Living in a small community was good during this time, as I was frequently crossing paths with everyone during our daily walks. It was quite a social experience, albeit at a safe distance.
I pretty much fell into my job in leisure and, over the years, with the help of many wonderful people and opportunities, I fell in love with working in leisure. Over the last few years, I’ve cut back on what I’ve been doing, but I’m glad that I got involved in the leisure industry back when I left school and the last fifty years have been brilliant. For further information please contact Right Directions at: info@rightdirections.co.uk or call 01582 840098.
