Find great staffTM leisure opportunities 24 JANUARY - 6 FEBRUARY 2017 ISSUE 702 Daily news & jobs: www.leisureopportunities.co.uk The Gym Group to open 17 new sites in 2017 The Gym Group is on course to our estate by more than 20 per meet its target of new openings cent and achieving our financial for 2017, with 17 sites in its goals. Our 2016 openings are development pipeline. performing well. In a pre-close trading “Our low-cost, highly statement, the low-cost gym affordable model, with a known announced it was on course to and predictable cost base, is meet the top end of its guidance arguably even more relevant range of 15 to 20 openings in today’s uncertain economic each year. The group opened climate. Our pipeline for 2017 is 15 clubs during 2016, which the strongest we have ever had increased the total number of with strong cash generation to sites in its portfolio to 89. fund future openings. Of the four sites acquired “We remain excited about from Fitness First UK in the growth opportunities that September 2016, one site has our low-cost model brings now opened, two sites are being and look forward to continued fitted out and one will shortly Treharne says the pipeline for 2017 is the “strongest the company has ever had” profitable progress in 2017.” have its lease completed. Treharne added that the The statement said that for the year to from 376,000 at the end of December 2015. company will attempt to boost and diversify 31 December 2016, total revenue was up Average members for 2016 was 429,000, up its income throughout 2017 by exploring 22.6 per cent on the previous year (2015). 20.8 per cent from 355,000 in 2015. secondary spend opportunities within its Year-end net debt was down to £5.2m, John Treharne, The Gym Group chief growing estate of clubs. The company will from £7.1m in 2015. Membership at the end executive, said: “This has been another year of announce preliminary results in mid-March. of 2016 stood at 448,000, up 19.1 per cent rapid progress growing the number of sites in Details: http://lei.sr?a=a7Z5Q_O £4m funding bonus for Sports jobs up by 10 museums and galleries per cent since 2012 The UK government has announced plans to distribute £4m in funding to The number of people working in the UK galleries and culture centres across sport sector has surged by almost 10 per Britain. Jointly funded through a cent since the London 2012 Olympic Games, partnership between the Department according to government statistics. for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), In 2015, there were 1.2m jobs in the sport and the Wolfson Foundation, the sector, accounting for 3.6 per cent of all jobs grants will allow 39 institutions in in the UK.This represents an increase of 9.5 1.2m people worked in the sport sector in 2015 England to increase access, improve per cent from 2012, when the figure was 1.06m. displays and enhance public spaces. The UK Sport Satellite Account, 2012, UK gross value added (GVA). That number Among the projects included, 2014 and 2015 report – which was produced has increased by 8.9 per cent since the Manchester’s National Football by the DCMS – also presented top line London Olympics and Paralympics, when Museum will receive £102,156. details on sport’s effect on the economy. sport brought home £32.1bn. In 2014, sport Continued on back cover During 2015 sport contributed £35bn contributed 34.3bn to the UK economy. to the UK economy, or 2.1 per cent of total Details: http://lei.sr?a=c5F4b_O GET Magazine sign up at PDF for iPad, Kindle & smart phone Online on digital turning pages Twitter follow us: leisureopportunities.co.uk/subs leisureopportunities.co.uk/pdf leisureopportunities.co.uk/digital @leisureopps @leisureoppsjobs LEISURE OPPS Job board live job updates Ezine sign up for weekly updates, Instant sign up for instant alerts, RSS sign up for job & news feeds leisureopportunities.co.uk leisureopportunities.co.uk/ezine leisureopportunities.co.uk/instant leisureopportunities.co.uk/rss Contacts: SPORT The Leisure Media Company Portmill House, Portmill Lane, Parkour recognised as sport Hitchin, Herts SG5 1DJ, UK Tel: +44 (0)1462 431385 Parkour will be eligible to Fax: +44 (0)1462 433909 bid for government and e-mail: please use contacts’ National Lottery funding [email protected] after the UK became the first Subscriptions country to officially recognise [email protected] the activity as a sport. The Home Country Sports Editor Councils – made up of Liz Terry 01462 431385 Sport England, Sport Wales, Head of News sportscotland and Sport Matthew Campelli 01462 471912 Northern Ireland – approved Journalists Parkour UK’s application of recognition as a sport. Tom Anstey 01462 471916 Also known as freerunning Jane Kitchen 01462 471929 or Art du Deplacement, The British governing body of Parkour was established in 2009 Kim Megson 01462 471915 parkour is a “non-competi- Products Editor tive physical discipline” which sees people run, People and Family Parkour, which speak to Kate Corney 01462 471927 jump and climb through any terrain available. ambitions laid out in the government sport Design It promotes functional strength and fitness, strategy, such as combating inactivity. balance, spatial awareness and coordination. Eugene Minogue, chief executive of Ed Gallagher 01905 20198 Sports minister Tracey Crouch Parkour UK – the body established in Internet made the announcement alongside 2009 – said the sport had come a long way Michael Paramore 01462 471926 the founder of the sport Sebastien Foucan. since it made its way to the UK in 2003. Dean Fox 01462 471900 “I want people to get out there and find “We’ve built a qualified workforce of more Tim Nash 01462 471917 the sport and physical activity that appeals than 600 people, we have led the development Emma Harris 01462 471921 to them and parkour is a fun, creative of a British, and now European standard for and innovative option,” said Crouch. parkour equipment. As a result, there are now Publisher The sport has a number of initiatives, such as more than 50 parkour parks in the UK,” he said. Julie Badrick 01462 471919 Parkour for Mental Health, Parkour for Older Details: http://lei.sr?a=D7A9y_O Associate Publisher Paul Thorman 01462 471904 Associate Publisher/ Property Desk Simon Hinksman 01462 471905 Green light for Chelsea stadium Account Manager Premier League football Chris Barnard 01462 471907 club Chelsea has seen its Jed Taylor 01462 471914 application to build a new Financial Administrator £500m stadium approved by Denise Adams 01462 471930 the local council. The London Circulation Manager Borough of Hammersmith Michael Emmerson 01462 471932 and Fulham has given the green light to the structure, which will be built on the Subscribe to Leisure Opportunities, site of the club’s current Online: www.leisuresubs.com Email: [email protected] Stamford Bridge ground. Tel: +44 (0)1462 471930 Herzog & de Meuron – Annual subscription rates are: UK £34, the architects behind the Europe £45, Rest of world £68, students UK £18. innovative Nouveau Stade de The stadium will have 60,000 seats – making it significantly larger Leisure Opportunities is published 26 times Bordeaux, which was used than the current 41,000-capacity Stamford Bridge ground a year by The Leisure Media Co Ltd, Portmill for Euro 2016 matches – have House, Portmill Lane, Hitchin, Herts SG5 1DJ, UK. The views expressed in this publication designed the 60,000-capacity venue. stadium on the site of White Hart Lane. are those of the author and do not necessarily Once built, the the stadium will be one of The venue – which will also be used for represent those of the publisher The Leisure the largest in the Premier League, rivalling the National Football League (NFL) matches – Media Co Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored home grounds of London adversaries Arsenal, will be able to hold 61,000 spectators. in a retrieval system or transmitted in any Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham. London mayor Sadiq Khan will have the last form or by means, electronic, mechanical, The former moved into its 60,000- say on whether the building can commence. photocopying, recorded or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright holder, seat Emirates Stadium in 2007, Chelsea will now have to seek out a temporary Cybertrek Ltd. Printed by Warners Midlands while the latter started playing in the home for a few seasons, with Twickenham in PLC. Distributed by Royal Mail Group Ltd and 57,000-capacity London Stadium last summer. south-west London and Wembley Stadium in Whistl Ltd in the UK and Total Mail Ltd globally. ©Cybertrek Ltd 2017 Tottenham Hotspur is in the process of north-west London being mooted. ISSN 0952/8210 (Print). ISSN 2397-2394 (Online). building its ambitious Populous-designed Details: http://lei.sr?a=n6C8S_O 2 Read Leisure Opportunities online: www.leisureopportunities.co.uk/digital Twitter: @leisureopps © CYBERTREK 2017 SPORT Birmingham looks at Crouch: ‘Time to innovate and grow’ facilities for 2026 bid A year on from delivering Birmingham will take a detailed look at its the first real piece of sporting facilities and infrastructure after launching policy in a decade, sports a feasibility study into the city hosting the minister Tracey Crouch 2026 Commonwealth Games. has challenged the sector to Origin Sports Group (OSG), headed grow and innovate following up by veteran sports administrator a period of transition. Debbie Jevans, will carry out the study Crouch revealed the during the first three months of 2017. The government’s 84-page Sporting feasibility study will look at what facilities Future strategy in December and provisions Birmingham needs to 2015, which switched the focus launch an official bid, so councillors from the number of people and partners can develop firm proposals.