Sport England’s Moving Communities, launched in March 2021, is driven by the largest data set gathered for public leisure facilities. The latest impact report was published in November.
Headlines:
- Women make up 53% of users. There has been positive growth across older people (age 55+), but decreases in under-45s.
- Social value grew to an estimated £3.6 billion being generated by the Moving Communities portfolio (1,419 sites), driven mainly by the value to individuals of improved wellbeing (87%) and the value to society of changes in health outcomes (13%).
- The average social value per participant increased to £242 in 2024/25, likely driven by the significant increase in the number of older participants, the higher female to male participation ratio, and more people consistently sustaining the required 150 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity per week.
- A total of 169 million visits were recorded in 2024/25 with an average of 262 thousand visits per site (under 1% growth over the two-year period).
- In 2024/25, outdoor and fitness activities saw the largest growth in visits (increasing by 14% and 13% respectively). Fitness activity growth was driven by a 21% increase in under-16 participants and a 19% increase among those aged 65+.
- Swimming-related activities saw the largest declines in 2024/25 compared to 2023/24, driven by a reduction in female participants (down 10.5%) and participants from IMD 1&2 (down 9.5%).
- All facility types built or significantly refurbished in the last 10 years achieved at least 9% more throughput, and at least 13% more income per site, in 2024/25 relative to older centres built 10+ years ago.
- The sector remains financially fragile post the Covid-19 pandemic and the energy crisis, with only 50% of centres showing a positive cost recovery. Income rose 9% which helps offset rising staff costs, but utility costs remain above pre-pandemic levels and are expected to rise further with increasing water costs.