Annual Report - Stevenage Leisure

annual report 

2010/11 

© Stevenage Leisure Limited 2011

H E A D I N G 

Stevenage Leisure Limited 

“Enhancing the 

quality of life for all” 

Stevenage 

Stevenage Arts & Leisure Centre 

Gordon Craig Theatre 

Stevenage Swimming Centre 

Shephall Leisure Centre 

John Henry Newman Leisure Centre 

Fairlands Valley Sailing Centre 

Stevenage Golf & Conference Centre 

Hertfordshire County 

Knights Templar Sports Centre 

Central Bedfordshire 

Saxon Pool & Leisure Centre 

Flitwick Leisure Centre 

Sandy Sports & Community Centre 

North Hertfordshire 

North Herts Leisure Centre 

Fearnhill Sports Centre 

Letchworth Outdoor Pool 

Hitchin Swimming Centre 

Fitness @ Archers Hitchin 

Royston Leisure Centre 

Rutland County 

Catmose Sports Centre 

www.stevenage-leisure.co.uk 

Working in Partnership 

ii Annual Report 2010/11

Contents 

The Year at a Glance 1 

About SLL 2 

Vision, Values & Mission 3 

Foreword by the Chairman 4 

Managing Director’s Report 5 

Board Structure 6 

Management Structure 7 

Highlights of the Year 8 

Arts 15 

Leisure 25 

Operations 58 

Environmental 60 

Facilities Management 61 

Health & Safety 62 

Finance 63 

The Future 69 

Annual Report 2010/11 

iii

iv Annual Report 2010/11

T H E Y E A R AT A G L A N C E 

• Increased turnover by over £2.7 million to £14,344,000 

• Increased net operating profit by 55% 

• Over £150,000 reinvested back into the facilities 

• Increased income from pantomime tickets by over £33,000 

• Increased fitness memberships to over 11,300 

• Increased visitor numbers by 700,000 to over 2.8 million 

• Increased fitness class participants by more than 18,000 to over 

215,000 for the year 

• .Increased number of dryside activity participants by more than 114,000 

to over 428,000 

• .Increased number of AquaEd swimming lessons delivered by over 

84,000 to over 300,000 for the year 

• Awarded the Social Enterprise Mark, the 3rd trust in the UK to 

achieve this 

• First SLL sites to achieve Quest scores in excess of 80% 

• Delivered over 640,000 casual swims across SLL’s pools 

Annual Report 2010/11 1

AHB EO AU DT I NS GL L 

Stevenage Leisure Limited (SLL) is a community 

based and focused Non-Profit Distributing 

Organisation (NPDO) and a recognised Social 

Enterprise. A private company, limited by guarantee, 

SLL was originally established to manage four leisure 

facilities in Stevenage. 

From an original turnover of £2.5 million, four facilities and 150 

employees, SLL has developed into one of the UK’s largest leisure 

management NPDO’s. With the recent award of 2 new contracts, 

from April 2011 SLL will manage contracts for five local authorities 

across Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire & Rutland, operating 17 indoor 

and outdoor facilities across 9 towns with a team of over 1,000 and a 

turnover of some £15 million. 

Across its wide portfolio SLL manages almost every type of leisure 

and cultural facility and activity but, most importantly of all, these are 

made available to everyone in the community and the company is 

focused on delivering quality and value for money leisure and cultural 

opportunities for all. 

As an NPDO, SLL’s success has enabled it to generate surpluses, 

which are continually reinvested back into the facilities for the benefit 

of its teams, client partners and, most importantly, the communities 

who are increasingly using the facilities. 

SLL’s portfolio of facilities: 

All of these facilities have established themselves as indoor and outdoor centres of excellence within the areas of sports, leisure, arts, culture, 

conferencing, exhibitions, major events and corporate entertainment. 

2 Annual Report 2010/11

V I S I O N , V A L U E S & M I S S I O N 

Stevenage Leisure Limited is a successful community 

based company, well regarded by its client partners, 

customers and users. It is well managed, innovative and 

resourceful, which has allowed it to prosper and flourish 

within a highly competitive industry. 

SLL recognises that its core services and activities offer a range of 

exciting and valuable opportunities and benefits for both individuals and 

the community. These include various forms of physical, creative and 

intellectual involvement and stimulation that contribute to personal health 

and wellbeing, the community’s overall quality of life, and enrich economic 

growth. Working in partnership with its client authorities, national governing 

bodies, and local health and community groups, SLL aims to inspire all to 

achieve their own personal goals and ambitions, whilst helping to deliver its 

clients’ Sustainable Community Strategies, and health and social agendas. 

Vision 

“SLL will remain at the forefront 

of community leisure and cultural 

provision by continually developing 

its operations and people, to 

deliver safe, enjoyable 

and affordable customer 

experiences.” 

Core Values 

SLL seeks to achieve its vision and mission and deliver its corporate strategy, 

by working within a transparent framework of 5 core values: 

We will: 

1. Put the customer first. 

– by listening to, and engaging with, our customers and earning 

their trust by resolving their issues and concerns. 

2. Be an employer of choice 

– through creating a positive, enjoyable and rewarding team 

environment. We will value every employee by providing clear 

direction, promoting development and equality of opportunity, 

working as one team by treating all fairly and with respect. 

3. Go the extra mile 

– ensuring that we will deliver on, and exceed, our promises to 

our customers, employees and partners, and add value in all that 

we do. 

4. Commit to continuous improvement 

– by embracing and welcoming change in all areas to remain 

at the leading edge of service provision and delivery, providing 

opportunity and choice for all, within safe and well-managed 

facilities. 

5. Work in partnership 

– with our partners to develop shared goals and objectives and 

remain at the core of the community. 

These values are linked to the core cultural values of our client authority 

partners: Stevenage Borough Council, North Herts District Council, 

Central Bedfordshire Council, Herts County Council and Rutland County 

Council, hence the excellent arrangements with these authorities and the 

local communities. 

Mission 

“To deliver the best service for our customers and clients.” 


F O R E W O R D B Y T H E C H A I R M A N 

SLL has been successfully operating community 

leisure and cultural facilities for 13 years now. 

During this time, it has made great strides in the 

commercial leisure world, with continuous growth 

achieved through the development of services 

within its existing contracts, and the award of 

new contracts in the face of stiff competition. The 

company is now facing new challenges, particularly 

with the difficult economic situation globally and in 

the UK, and its impact on local authority funding 

and discretionary areas of consumer spend, such as 

leisure. 

The Board is determined to achieve greater surpluses year on year, 

which are to be reinvested in the people and the facilities. 2010/11 

was the first successful step in achieving this aim. 

SLL continues to enjoy a very good working partnership with its 

key stakeholders, and works closely with each to help deliver their 

objectives, health, educational and social agendas. 

We will continue to play our part in enriching the lives of the 

local communities as part of The Big Society, and to provide the 

opportunities to improve their health and wellbeing. We will embrace 

the Localism Bill and the Government’s Responsibility Deal and, 

as part of the Herts is Ready for Winners Partnership, we will take 

advantage of the opportunities and interest generated by the 2012 

Olympics, helping more people to become more active. 

The final thanks must go to our valued customers 

who are using the facilities in increasing numbers. 

Over 2.8 million people visited SLL facilities in 

2010/11, and focusing on meeting and exceeding 

their needs will again be our key priority this coming 

year. 

This year, we set out to further improve the organisation in terms of 

corporate governance, cost reductions, branding and communication. 

We have again worked hard this year in partnership with our client 

Local Authorities: Stevenage Borough Council, Central Bedfordshire 

Council, North Hertfordshire District Council, Hertfordshire County 

Council and Rutland County Council. Together, we have continued 

to improve the facilities, and this has resulted in significant increases in 

sporting and cultural visits across the portfolio. 

Roger Gochin 

Chairman 


M A N A G I N G D I R E C T O R ’ S R E P O R T 

2010/11 was a very successful year for the 

Company, which delivered a better than budgeted 

surplus of some £120,000, which enabled 

additional pension contributions to be made 

and reinvestment back into the Company. This 

further demonstrated SLL’s strength, as against its 

competitors, in that its services and facilities offer 

outstanding quality and value, whilst making them 

accessible to everyone in the community. 

SLL commenced two new 7-year contracts in 2010/11 at Hitchin and 

Royston, for North Hertfordshire District Council, and both facilities 

have performed extremely well in their first year. 

The Company also benefited from contract extensions to 3 sites 

at Letchworth with North Hertfordshire District Council and 3 

sites at Saxon, Flitwick, and Sandy, within the Central Bedfordshire 

Contract. Unfortunately all parties determined that the operation of 

Biggleswade Recreation Centre could not be continued. 

Clear messages were established within the Corporate Strategy 

Business Objectives and these have been very successfully enacted, 

enabling the company to achieve some huge strides forward. SLL has 

continued to develop its Performance Management System, enabling 

all employees to have similar objectives, and to encourage the 

development of competencies and behaviours that will help deliver 

the strategic aims of the Company. 

During 2010/11 SLL continued the partnership development with 

Rutland County Council to operate the new BSF project in Oakham, 

Catmose Sports Centre, which opens in April 2011. It was a huge 

task to take the initial concept and get all the contracts, systems, 

equipment, procedures, IT and people in place, to turn it into a fully 

functional facility, so it was ‘all hands on deck’ for most of the year and 

a fantastic team effort from Managers from across the Company. 

Recognition of our efforts to continually improve was demonstrated 

through our fantastic Quest assessment scores: 

• Shephall Leisure Centre improved from 73% to 75% 

• Stevenage Swimming Centre improved from 75% to 77% 

• Hitchin Swimming Centre retained its score of 77% (a very 

impressive result considering SLL only took over in April) 

• Knights Templar Sports Centre improved from 75% to 82% 

(taking over from Flitwick (80%) and Royston (81%) as the highest 

SLL Quest accredited centre!) 

SLL now has 9 accredited sites, all of which are rated as ‘Highly 

Commended’ or ‘Excellent’ 

This summer Fairlands Valley Park was also awarded the Green 

Flag for the second year running. The award was achieved through 

Stevenage Borough Council and SLL working closely in partnership to 

offer excellent quality facilities and ongoing development plans. 

SLL was awarded the prestigious Social Enterprise Mark, highlighting 

that we are now a recognised social enterprise, an ethical company 

with social and environmental aims who are trading for people and 

the planet. We were the 3rd trust in the country to receive the 

accreditation, and join companies such as the Eden Project. 

The professionalism of Flitwick Leisure Centre’s crèche was 

recognized in its Ofsted inspection where it received an ‘Outstanding’ 

rating. 

The Stevenage Golf Club celebrated its 30th year in style, with a 

national title as winners of the NAPGC Clapham Common Platinum 

Shield held at Western Park Golf Club, Leicester. 

The Stevenage Arts & Leisure Centre achieved national recognition 

with the filming of the BBC’s Question Time, with David Dimbleby 

and guests, including the Home Secretary, Alan Johnson. 

A major change also came in the Gordon Craig Theatre, where a 

new pantomime company, Jordan Productions, was appointed, with 

their first show, Snow White, delivering a fantastic box office success. 

Other significant improvements have been achieved with the 

Company’s ‘AquaEd’ Swim School programme, which continues to 

flourish and deliver the ASA’s National Plan for Teaching Swimming, 

offering high quality swim tuition for 50 weeks of the year to over 

20,000 children and adults at all SLL pools. The MRM booking 

system has been upgraded, to enable standardisation across centres 

and a process for web bookings. SLL now has a new look website to 

deliver a cleaner and fresh look with improved functionality. We also 

have a new centralised 24 hour customer information number for all 

of our centres: 0300 012 0300, to make it easier for customers to be 

aware of activity details and to access facilities directly. 

SLL has also been working closely with Hertfordshire PCT/NHS 

Herts to promote health awareness, providing support for chlamydia 

screening and smoking cessation. 

SLL has some exceptional people in the Company, who work 

tirelessly every day, often in very difficult (not least life saving) 

circumstances, to ensure that our customers enjoy a safe and happy 

experience. There are also many members of the SLL team that 

have achieved personal accreditations this year, and received national 

recognition from their Associations and Institutes. One particular 

person who deserves a mention is Tina Lander who was appointed 

as Senior Team Manager for the GB diving squad. 

It is important also to recognise the valuable time and effort, given by 

the Main Board in a voluntary capacity, which enables SLL to function 

so effectively. 

I would finally like to welcome all the new team members who 

have joined SLL this year and to say a big thank you to everyone for 

maintaining the incredibly high standards across the Company. 

Ian Morton 

Managing Director 


B O A R D S T R U C T U R E 

Main Board Executive Non 

Directors Executive § 

DIRECTORS 

Roger Gochin (Chair) * 

Paul Raine (Vice Chair) * 

Ian Paske * 

Scott Crudgington * 

Derek Williams * 

Jaki Salisbury * 

Ian Morton * 

Vacancy * 

Board Committees 

NOMINATIONS & REMUNERATION 

‘INDEPENDENT’ AUDIT COMMITTEE 

Roger Gochin 

Ian Paske 

Ian Morton 

Brian Mitchell 

Mark Hubbocks (Wagstaffs) 

Ian Morton 

Natalie Bennett 

Focus Groups 

FINANCE 

CUSTOMER 

Ian Paske 

Scott Crudgington 

Ian Morton 

Derek Williams 

Jaki Salisbury 

Jon Stone 

Natalie Bennett 

OBSERVERS 

Councillor Sharon Taylor – Leader, Stevenage Borough Council (SBC) 

Councillor Howard Burrell – Portfolio Holder – Children & Young People, Culture, Sport & Leisure, SBC 

§ All Non-Executive Directors will also be Company Members. 


M A N A G E M E N T S T R U C T U R E 


H I G H L I G H T S O F T H E Y E A R 

“SLL was awarded the 

prestigious Social Enterprise 

Mark, highlighting that 

we are now a recognised 

social enterprise, an ethical 

company with social and 

environmental aims who are 

trading for people and the 

planet. We were the 3rd trust 

in the country to receive 

the accreditation, and join 

companies such as the Eden 

Project.” 

SOURCE: Managing Director’s Report 

SLL Newsletter No.12, August 2010 

“The Outdoor Pool celebrated its 75th anniversary during the summer, 

therefore numerous events and promotions took place, including a 

community fun day with a 75p entrance fee and a celebration for regular 

customers, councillors and representatives from SLL and NHDC which 

involved birthday cake, champagne and speeches detailing the history of 

the site.” 

SOURCE: Letchworth Outdoor Pool Report 


H I G H L I GH HE AT DS ION F G T H E Y E A R 

“Undoubtedly, the unequivocal highlight of the year was the pantomime, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. This 

was our first venture with Jordan Productions Ltd who have been providing pantomime to regional theatres for 

the last 15 years. The second biggest grossing pantomime in the last 10 years, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs 

played to high acclaim and cemented the foundation of a new venture between the two companies, making The 

Gordon Craig the flagship venue for Jordan’s.” 

• 97 performances 

• Over 39,000 tickets sold 

• Ticket sales of over £597,000 

SOURCE: Gordon Craig Theatre Report 

Reproduced with kind permission of The Comet, September 9, 2010 


H I G H L I G HHT ES AOD F I NT GH E Y E A R 

SLL Newsletter No.13, December 2010 

“The professionalism of Flitwick Leisure Centre’s 

crèche was recognized in its Ofsted inspection 

where it received an ‘Outstanding’ rating.” 



H I G H L I GH HE AT DS ION F G T H E Y E A R 

SLL once again raised thousands for charities through the tireless efforts of its teams at all 

of its centres. 

5 pools – at Stevenage, Hitchin, Royston, Saxon and Flitwick took part in the Swimathon 

raising over £20,000 for a very worthwhile cause. 


H I G H L I G HHT ES AOD F I NT GH E Y E A R 

“In 2010 we celebrated our 

tenth anniversary and have 

grown considerably during 

this period. All members 

were invited to celebrate 

this landmark occasion at 

the Centre, together with 

founder members of the 

centre and representatives 

from the Knights Templar 

School and SLL.” 

SOURCE: Knights Templar Sports Centre 

Report 

Reproduced with kind permission of Hitchin Advertiser, February 23, 2011 

“The centre has 

been heavily involved 

in the planning and 

procurement of the now 

fully funded High Ropes 

project. When this opens 

it will be of regional 

significance for both the 

leisure and education 

market, and is expected 

to be a major asset to 

the centre.” 

SOURCE: Fairlands Valley Sailing 

Centre Report 

Reproduced with kind permission of The Comet, February 24, 2011 


H I G H L I G H T S O F T H E Y E A R 

“During 2010/11 SLL continued the partnership development with Rutland County Council to operate the 

new BSF project in Oakham, Catmose Sports Centre, which opens in April 2011. It was a huge task to take 

the initial concept and get all the contracts, systems, equipment, procedures, IT and people in place, to turn 

it into a fully functional facility, so it was ‘all hands on deck’ for most of the year and a fantastic team effort 

from Managers from across the Company.” 


Reproduced with kind permission of Rutland Times, Thursday, March 24, 2011 



A R T S 

arts 

SLL continues to deliver cultural activities and 

opportunities for both young and old through the 

Gordon Craig Theatre, our Education and 

Outreach Team, and the Boxfield Gallery 

–allowing the local community to enjoy the best 

in live entertainment, as well as showcase and 

develop their own skills and talents. 


H EA RD TI SN 

G 


The 507 seat Gordon Craig Theatre continued 

to offer one of the most diverse and popular 

programmes amongst any venue in Hertfordshire. 

With community theatre, touring shows and inhouse 

productions the Gordon Craig has a wide 

appeal throughout the county and beyond, and 

its programme is complemented by the 1200 

seat Main Hall that offers a varied programme of 

comedy, music and mediumship throughout the 

year. In 2010 – 11 over 131,000 people visited the 

Gordon Craig Theatre and Main Hall 

Undoubtedly, the unequivocal highlight of the year was the 

pantomime, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. This was our 

first venture with Jordan Productions Ltd who have been providing 

pantomime to regional theatres for the last 15 years. The second 

biggest grossing pantomime in the last 10 years, Snow White and the 

Seven Dwarfs played to high acclaim and cemented the foundation 

of a new venture between the two companies, making The Gordon 

Craig the flagship venue for Jordan’s. 

Our Easter and Summer Musicals, ‘The Adventures of Mr Toad’ and 

‘Guys and Dolls’ brought a touch of West End quality to Stevenage in 

April and August. They featured established professionals alongside 

accomplished local performers together with a professional creative 

team and orchestra to deliver a production of the highest standards. 

The community theatre theme was continued through the high 

number of community groups and local amateur dramatic societies 

that utilised the Gordon Craig’s facilities. 

Our play seasons continued as staples of the programme in February 

and September, and we played host to some of the biggest of the 

regional tours including ‘Gotta Sing, Gotta Dance’, ‘That’ll Be The 

Day’, ‘The Naked Truth’, the world premiere of ‘Shaun The Sheep’s 

Big Show’ and ‘The Moscow Ballet’. Our annual New Year’s Eve 

seven-hour extravaganza was more popular than ever this year, 

thanks in part to the continued success that ‘That’ll Be The Day’ 

enjoys here at the Arts and Leisure Centre. 

In the Main Hall performances by top names such as Jimmy Carr, 

Bradley Walsh, Brian Conley, Jason Manford and Lenny Henry 

provided the comedy whilst The Stylistics, The Royal Philharmonic 

Orchestra and Boogie Nights provided a musical interlude. Physic 

Sally on the road brought her physic flare as well as her TV cameras 

to the Main Hall not once, but twice, whilst the Main Hall also played 

host to a multiple of other events. 


A R T S 


H EA RD TI SN 

G 

Education and Outreach 

2010-11 marked a major change for the Education 

and Outreach Department with the disbanding 

of The Youth Theatre and its replacement with a 

series of Drama Academies, which, over the course 

of the year, went from strength to strength. Their 

collective aim was for their participants to ‘Create, 

Inspire and Amaze’ with their performance skills 

honed over the course of the three ten-week terms 

by professional actors, choreographers and musical 

directors. The Gordon Craig Little Stars, Junior 

Drama Academy and Senior Drama Academy (as 

they became known) catered for children from as 

young as 3 up to 18. 

The only professional venue in Hertfordshire to offer the chance 

for an onstage performance, The Education Team worked with the 

young people to create works as daring as ‘Sinbad’ and ‘Sweeney 

Todd – The Musical’. Lower age groups produced pantomimes and 

performed them to parents and friends alike, with the overriding 

impression one of high aptitude and professionalism. 

The Leisure 50’s classes continued to run and attendance was 

generally very good with some numbers increasing. The partnership 

with North Herts College was further developed with an increase in 

the number of courses being offered. 

As well as the above, the new Education and Outreach Suite also 

provided a home to the many Activity Days, which, for the first 

time, ran throughout August and the most of other school holidays, 

and proved extremely popular and successful with sessions often 

running to capacity. Full and part-day options were available, offering 

a mix of drama, arts and craft and sports, and provided scope for the 

continued development of workshops to complement the artistic 

programme of the Gordon Craig. Backstage tours grew in popularity 

amongst schools and other groups, and offered a unique insight into 

the goings on behind the scenes of a busy regional theatre. 

Work Experience placements were offered throughout the year 

with placements available backstage and within the Arts and Events 

Department, both of which proved extremely popular. The team 

were able to offer an extended placement to one student with 

learning disabilities from Lonsdale School, which has been running for 

over a year. 


A R T S 

junior drama 

academy 

g o r d o n c r a i g t h e a t r e 

s e n i o r d r a m a a c a d e m y 


H EA RD TI SN 

G 

Visual Arts 

2010/11 was yet again a busy year in the life of the 

Boxfield Galley and Gordon Craig Theatre Foyer 

Gallery, both of which housed exhibitions from a 

variety of local artists and groups. The exhibitions 

ranged in size, style and subjects, and encompassed 

a variety of disciplines and media. 

Exhibitions in the form of Age Concern, Stevenage Arts Society and 

the Stevenage Underwater Photographic Society, as well also from 

many other established artists drew visitors from across the local area. 

The Foyer Gallery gave the opportunity for the Leisure 50’s 

group and many other local artists to exhibit their work within the 

surroundings of the Theatre Foyer. Local schoolchildren were given 

the opportunity to enter a competition to design the front cover of 

the pantomime programme, and many of the entries were displayed 

in the gallery over the course of the pantomime run. 

All artwork in this gallery is on display to all theatre patrons, and 

therefore attracts a high number of visitors. 


A R T S 

All artwork in this gallery is on 

display to all theatre patrons, and 

therefore attracts a high number 

of visitors. 


C O N F E R E N C E / B U S I N E S S E V E N T S 

The conferencing department at the Stevenage Arts 

and Leisure Centre enjoyed another impressive 

year in 2010-11. A unique venue, with excellent 

transport links and advanced technical capabilities, 

the Arts and Leisure Centre boasts three 

conference suites, a Main Hall, Bowls Hall, Theatre, 

and Restaurant- all of which are available for private 

hire, meaning we have the ability and capacity to 

cater for functions of almost any size, and to the 

highest possible standards. 

The Main Hall, the most versatile of the spaces, played host to a 

number of high-level events including the annual dinner and awards 

ceremonies from Veolia Water and MBDA. The BBC chose the 

facility to film an episode of its flagship programme ‘Question Time’, 

whilst Tesco transformed it into a replica of the television set for 

‘Tesco Does Strictly Come Dancing’, with Tesco employees being 

paired with professional dancers in aid of charity. Return visitors 

included Rock Challenge, which features children from across the 

country, and the London and Southern Region Annual Brass Bands 

Championships, which utilises every spare corner of the building. 

Regular bookings came in the form of ACCA examinations, Weight 

Watchers, the National Blood Service, Stevenage Homes Limited, 

and Stevenage Borough Council. Community groups such as The 

Girl Guides and local church groups also used the building frequently. 

Unique events such as The Archant Business Expo and the Archant 

Wedding Fair saw the Main Hall transformed into an exhibition 

hall, attracting stallholders coming from across the region. Youth 

Connexions held a Careers Fair for local young people, The 

Stevenage Community Trust held a celebrity lunch and fundraiser at 

Christmas, and the Town Twinning Gala was once again held here on 

behalf of Stevenage Borough Council. The council also held election 

counts at the centre as part of the General and Local Government 

Elections, and the venue was also once again home to the Mayor’s 

Community Reception. 

The Ovations Restaurant enjoyed success in the form of a new 

menu together with a number of wedding, birthday, anniversary and 

christening functions and also the Stevenage Labour Party’s annual 

dinner dance. Christmas Parties and Jazz Lunches also proved to be 

in demand. 


C O N F E R E N C E / B U S I N E S S E V E N T S 

s t e v e n a g e l e i s u r e l i m i t e d 

conferencing 



L E I S U R E 

leisure 

Across its leisure facilities SLL 

continued to deliver a wide 

range of high quality and safe, 

wet and dryside activities at 

value for money prices for 

around 2.8 million visitors 

each year. 

SLL remains focused 

on providing the best 

customer experiences for 

all the Community who are 

increasingly using the centres. 


L E I S U R E 

Sports & Fitness@stevenage 

The sports & fitness facilities at Stevenage Arts & 

Leisure Centre continued to work closely with 

other departments to host a variety of leisure and 

cultural activities and events. 

The Main Hall and Bowls Hall were used to their full potential 

throughout the year hosting a number of various activities and events. 

As well as housing over 40 sporting clubs throughout the week, the 

halls are often used at weekends to allow us to run sporting events, 

children’s parties, concerts, conferences and weddings. 

Throughout the year there were a number of martial events including 

regional karate gradings and British kendo tournaments. We also 

hosted a number of county badminton tournaments in both halls, 

and a national junior badminton tournament in December. Also 

throughout the year we had a county bridge tournament and a 

national baton twirling championship held at the centre. We also 

held the national women’s police basketball tournament over a 2-day 

period, which was very successful. 

We continued our partnership with Sport Stevenage, with the mini 

Olympics being held in both halls and the squash courts, giving the 

opportunity for hundreds of children to enjoy taster sessions in a 

variety of sports. 

The non-sporting events continued to increase throughout the year, 

with the Main Hall & Bowls Hall converted to allow the centre to 

offer high-class events. The transformation of the sports/bowls hall in 

these instances can be truly remarkable. 

The facility successfully continued its work with local clubs in a variety 

of sports from netball and badminton to bowls and ballet. The sports 

& fitness areas of the centre alone attracted over 143,000 users in 

the year, not including those attending other main events in these 

areas. 

To raise awareness, whilst also giving our customers something to 

work towards, we staged a Dance Spectacular in June and again in 

December. Not only did these events attract over 600 people each 

time to watch our class users perform, they also managed to raise 

over £5,000 for worthy local charities. 

The fitness suite ran a range of promotions throughout the year, often 

alongside the Wellness membership at the Swimming Centre to help 

increase awareness at both sites. 

What our members said... 

“After suffering from an intermittent running injury for over a year, 

I decided it was time to take action! Conveniently, being a trainer 

in Stevenage Leisure Centre, Chris was able to create a training 

plan that took my injury into account, so I was able to maintain 

my level of fitness whilst undergoing treatment. 

The treatment itself was rigorous and provided relief from an 

awkward injury. Coupled with the advice given by Chris it proved 

to be effective as I am now able to run long distance again. 

Having an injury can be infuriating at times and the treatment 

and support I received was excellent. Chris provided a friendly and 

professional service that achieved results.” 

Kirsty Rimmer 

“I would just like to say how pleased I am that I joined Stevenage 

Leisure Centre. Not only have I found that they have the best 

exercise machines in Stevenage but they also offer the best value. 

The staff I have found to be very friendly and able to give good 

advice. Since joining I have lost over half a stone and thanks to 

Brad I am starting to gain more muscle. 

I would recommend that anybody looking to get fit and perhaps 

lose some weight should consider joining Stevenage Leisure 

Centre.” 

Ken Attwell 

“I joined the gym in October 2010, at the time I was suffering 

quite badly with Sciatica, and was taking a lot of medication. 

Chris Tillbrook made up a program for me to work through, the 

idea being to strengthen my core muscles to help my back. 

I have been coming to the gym three times a week, and Chris has 

gradually increased my programme as I have progressed. 

For the last three months I have been totally pain free, and have 

come off all the medication, I have even started to play golf again, 

something I never thought I would be doing this time last year. 

I am amazed the difference coming to the gym has made, and am 

very grateful to Chris and all the staff there.” 

Russell Horton 


L E I S U R E 

The biggest changes were seen in 

the fitness area. After the major 

enhancement programme at 

the start of 2010, the fitness 

memberships have continued 

to rise from 1200 members to 

over 1400 members during 

this period. The balance of use 

has changed for the better 

within the gym, and this has 

led to a more ‘friendly’ gym 

atmosphere being created, 

helped considerably by the 

fitness team interacting 

more directly with 

customers. This has had 

a knock-on effect onto 

the dance studio, with 

the timetable now 

catering for more 

classes than ever and 

record numbers. Class 

attendance rose 33% 

on the previous year, 

with an average of 

over 2000 users per 

month. 

fitness @ stevenage 

enjoy your health 


L E I S U R E 

Fairlands Valley Sailing Centre 

Over the past year Fairlands Valley has continued 

to expand and evolve its educational and youth 

development activities. Corporate business has also 

developed through the provision of team-building 

days to local companies and event providers. 

During the year the Fairlands team, working with corporate 

marketing, developed the concept of working under the banner of 

“Fairlands Valley Outdoor Activities” to encompass the additional 

facilities built upon during the lake closure period. This revised 

branding has proved useful in reflecting the increasingly wide range of 

activities at the centre. 

Working closely with the Stevenage School’s Sports Partnership, 

Fairlands continued its work with inclusion units and expanded 

its work with Stevenage secondary schools and out of town 

educational groups, offering the young people the opportunity to 

work on community projects and take part in the adventurous 

activities and problem solving exercises. The centre continued to 

offer Hertfordshire Schools & Canoe Association (HSSCA) regular 

low price Saturday morning sailing, to encourage young people to 

progress and develop new skills. 

A link has been developed between Fairlands and the recently 

grant funded “Turning the Tide Project”, which will lead to income 

generation from teaching children to sail boats which they have built 

themselves. For the first time in 2010 BBC’s ‘Springwatch’, working 

with the SBC parks team, hosted a family open day to provide a 

variety of across the board opportunities, which helped better profile 

the wide ranging diversity that the park and centre are able to offer. 

The Fairlands facebook site increased its links with young people and 

proves to be a effective medium for communication with existing and 

potential customers. At a recent National Governing Body (NGB) 

conference it was reported that facebook was more effective than 

text, email and conventional mail when communicating with the 16 - 

23 age group. 

During the summer of 2010 the GR8 mobile climbing wall continued 

to be very popular with schools, youth groups and at community 

events around Stevenage and the surrounding areas. 

The Aqua Play area, in its second year, proved a very popular free 

attraction for the residents of Stevenage and beyond, with many 

thousands of visitors flocking in on sunny days. 

As in previous years, inter-schools cross-country events again 

proved very popular in the park. To allow more pupils to 

participate, the events again took place over two separate days for 

different age groups, with the primary schools event taking place a 

couple of weeks before the larger secondary schools event. 

The team’s pyrotechnic expertise and event management 

experience was utilised to successfully present and oversee the 

November 5th firework display and Town Centre christmas lights 

‘switch on’, including fireworks, live stage performances and crowd 

control. 

The team at Fairlands continued to work closely with Hertfordshire 

County Council (HCC) officers to gain recognition for the centre 

to offer 14-19 Alternative Provision, and formal work experience 

opportunities now take place at the centre. 

As part of the centre’s development and ongoing disabled sailing 

programme, Fairlands successfully gained recognition as an RYA 

foundation site. This, followed with the very successful Eastern 

Regional Regatta at Alton Water (Nr Ipswich), enabled two pupils 

from a Stevenage Special School to take part in a whole day of 

activities supported by the local Rotary Club and instructors from 

SLL in a volunteer capacity. 

Stevenage Borough Council’s ongoing commitment to boat 

replacement has now enabled the centre to benefit from some 

more modern and up to date dinghies for teaching adults and 

children, in line with RYA guidance, making us more comparable 

with the bigger organisations like PGL and holiday destinations in 

the UK and abroad. 

The centre has been heavily involved in the planning and 

procurement of the now fully funded High Ropes project. When 

this opens it will be of regional significance for both the leisure and 

education market, and is expected to be a major asset to the centre. 

The park was awarded the ‘Green Flag’ for the second year in 

succession. 

Fairlands continued to be a venue of choice for local and regional 

charities, and during the year hosted the following major events: 

• Race for Life (Cancer Research UK) 

• Sponsored walks for Bedwell Rangers, Macmillan Cancer 

Support and Climb 

• 2 charity horse shows 

• Dragon Boat Race: Mercy Ships (International Charity) & Rotary 

Club at Ware 

• Santa Run (Pasque Charity) 

• Hertfordshire Air Ambulance Rota Run 

This is in addition to local groups (i.e. Fairlands Valley Spartans and 

Health Walks), and fairs and circuses that use the park throughout 

the year, all of which make Fairlands such a popular venue. 


L E I S U R E 

The Sports Partnership and 

Fairlands enjoyed another 

year’s Schools Dragon Boat 

Festival providing two days of 

activities for over 300 pupils. 

Youth groups (i.e. Scouts, 

Guides and uniformed 

groups like Sea Cadets) 

continued to regularly use 

the centre for their major 

events and water activities. 


L E I S U R E 

Fearnhill Sports Centre 

Fearnhill Sports Centre continued to be the base 

for many of Letchworth Garden City’s sports clubs. 

As in previous years, the centre has been home to 

badminton clubs such as Broadwater, Highbury and 

Redhoods, and the Khalsa Football Academy. 

Along with retaining its loyal customers, Fearnhill Sports Centre is 

now home to Jon’s Badminton Academy and Kaisho Martial Arts. 

The management of the centre has worked hard to ensure that 

its Business Plan targets have been achieved. One of these was to 

work alongside the NHDC Sports Development to create extra 

opportunities on site during school holidays. This was achieved over 

the Easter school holidays, when the centre worked in partnership to 

run a two-day Olympic themed children’s active camp. The trial was 

a success with 14 and 15 children turning up each day. 

Relationships between SLL and Fearnhill School have improved over 

the year, with quarterly meetings taking place. This has been helped 

by the inclusion of management being on rota at least once a week, 

giving the school a focus point for any queries and vice versa. As a 

result of these improved relationships, SLL and Fearnhill School were 

able to agree on purchasing new gymnastics matting. This was raised 

through funding received from Kiasho Marshal Arts, a new booking 

with the Centre. 

Sports hall usage increased by 300 during 2010-11. A key reason 

for this increase was the resealing of the sports hall floor, as the new 

high quality flooring helped attract both badminton clubs and casual 

bookings. Usage in the gymnasium also increased by 100. 


L E I S U R E 


L E I S U R E 

Flitwick Leisure Centre 

Flitwick Leisure Centre welcomed over 350,000 

visitors during the year, a significant increase of over 

50,000 on the previous year, and continued to 

work through its Service Improvement Strategy to 

ensure that we were ready for the upcoming Quest 

inspection in April 2011. Quest was being 

re-launched and Flitwick was chosen as the first 

centre to be assessed under the new audit process, 

so the pressure was on! 

The centre invited new members into the management team who 

all brought new ideas and qualities to the already experienced team. 

The centre was able to push forward with the new recruits and now 

the team and the partnership with Central Bedfordshire Council is 

stronger than ever. 

Flitwick Dolphins Swimming Club and the Mid Beds Swim 

Squad also continued to deliver a high standard of swimmers, 

and communication improved at all levels. The main coach was 

on maternity leave so the position was filled and the new coach 

continued the very high standards. 

After listening to customers and researching national trends, the 

centre introduced cheerleading to the dryside timetable. This proved 

very popular and, due to its success, was taken on a step further with 

the launch of freestyle gymnastics. This attracted boys and girls from a 

variety of ages and meant demonstrations and activities could be very 

versatile and fun. 

The Centre aims to encourage and provide support and help to a 

wide range of customers. For example, some of those customers 

attend our Cardiac Rehabilitation Group and below are some of their 

stories: 

“I feel I must write to tell you how much my attendance at 

this class has contributed to my present wellbeing. Jacqui runs 

a well-constructed class, which allows everyone to exercise 

according to their abilities and need, whilst always maintaining 

a friendly atmosphere. This date every week means that the 

regular exercise and social contact is an important component in 

maintaining the improved health and quality of life, which I now 

enjoy.” 

Brian O’Hara 

“I’m sure that without the encouragement, dedication & sense of 

discipline you instil in us, we would all have languished at home. 

We would have deteriorated and indeed, some of us would not be 

here by now. Truly, you’ve given us a new lease of life. I, for one, 

am eternally thankful, & I am sure I speak for the entire Class.” 

Tony Fowler 

“I believe I am one of the youngest members of the Cardiac Rehab 

classes that Jacqui takes, and because of my continued need to 

work, it is not always possible to make the classes on a regular 

basis. This is a pity because they are so enjoyable and for the first 

time in my life I feel I am getting fit. 

The class members are a jolly lot and show a good degree of 

support for Jacqui and commitment to the sessions. It is an 

enjoyable and worthwhile experience both in its purpose and 

activity. 

Jacqui knows her members well, understands their limitations and 

is pleasantly competent in her duties. If she were not, then there 

would not be such a willingness to attend by all concerned.” 

Graham Cooper 

“What can I say about the Flitwick Cardiac Rehab Group? Well, 

it’s full of geriatrics like me who are recovering from one sort of 

cardiac incident or another, who go round in circles twice a week 

like those hippos you see on BBC1 in between programmes. We 

also stretch every sinew using every piece of torture device devised 

by man: rowing machine, bicycles, weights, steps, trampolines, etc. 

etc. All of these unimaginable activities are carried out under the 

control of supervisors Jackie and Matt, who keep a watchful eye 

over us to make sure there’s no slacking in the ranks! 

The Centre’s overall financial performance remained strong for the 

year, resulting in a positive financial position at the end of the year. 

Flitwick continues to strive to deliver excellent quality and levels 

of service to all our customers, our partner authority and, most 

importantly, the whole community. 

There’s actually more to it than that, however. J & M are very 

aware of individual needs and capabilities, and are careful that we 

don’t overdo things. During the sessions they make time to talk to 

everyone, about anything and everything, and that really helps to 

keep the wheels turning smoothly. Despite the physical work, each 

session is also very much a social occasion -- just as important in 

the rehabilitation process. J & M are true professionals, and it’s 

always a pleasure to go along. I certainly miss it when I can’t go.” 

Ian Wade 


L E I S U R E 

In August the centre benefited 

from the replacement of 29 pieces 

of CV equipment with the latest 

state of the art equipment from 

Technogym. This included bigger 

screens, iPod connectivity and 

improved accessibility for the 

less able bodied. 

A new Kinesis Circuit was also 

installed, and the gym was 

repainted with new signage. 

lifestyles @ flitwick 

...be healthy 


L E I S U R E 

Hitchin Swimming Centre 

In December 2009, SLL were successful in 

winning the Management Contract for the Hitchin 

Swimming Centre and Archers Health Club, with 

the transfer of management companies to SLL 

taking place on 1st April 2010. 

Prior to this time SLL had undertaken a significant 

amount of work in preparation for what needed 

to be a smooth and seamless transition, to ensure 

minimum disturbance and inconvenience to both 

the centre users and the operational team. 

Since the initial transfer and “bedding in period” Hitchin Swimming 

Centre & Fitness @ Archers has continued to develop its policies and 

procedures in line with the SLL QMS and culture, and the team have 

embraced the changes which are inevitably brought about by such a 

transition. This has been reflected in the strong overall performance 

of the centre, which attracted over 340,000 visitors over the year. 

Once again the centre actively supported Swimathon, raising over 

£14,500 for Marie Curie Cancer Care. The budgeted net profit 

was achieved by over £130,000 thanks to strong performances by 

the AquaEd Swim School, private swimming lessons, retail sales and 

fitness income. Fitness memberships increased to a high of over 

1,650 members, a number that still continues to grow. 

Over the past year Hitchin Swimming Centre and Fitness @ Archers 

has continued to develop some close partnerships which assist in the 

delivery of the mission statement and company goals. These include 

our partner authority North Herts District Council, the extended 

Schools Co-ordinator for Hitchin (who also provided additional 

funding for Top-Up Swimming), Sport North Herts, and the East & 

North Herts PCT with whom we work developing the GP referral 

scheme 

Working closely with Energ, the centre has also reduced its energy 

costs by 3.2% 

The current economical climate had an effect on some areas of 

operation within the centre, with a reduction in non-essential 

spending from certain customer types that use the facility. Schools 

have also had their budgets cut and this has impacted on pool hire 

and sports hall hire by the local schools. A positive message mission 

is being put in place to try to get schools to return to the facility, and 

links with the extended schools should bring in additional income for 

schools to use the facility. 

The success of the centre has generated a sizeable profit share fund. 

This fund is to be used for facility enhancements and customer facing 

projects. It is hoped to use some of this money in the coming year 

towards a new fitness studio, and also to enhancing the changing 

rooms at Archers with improvements to the plant and equipment 

when necessary. 


L E I S U R E 

fitness @ hitchin 


SPLASH 

café 


L E I S U R E 

John Henry Newman Leisure Centre 

John Henry Newman Leisure Centre continued its 

reputation of offering a range of sporting facilities to 

both the local community and users from further 

afield. The centre plays an active and important 

role in creating sporting opportunities that are 

accessible and affordable by all. 

2010/11 yet again saw participation at JHN Leisure 

Centre grow in successive years, an encouraging 

feat which all can be proud of. 

JHN Leisure Centre continues to act as a training venue for a large 

number of sports clubs throughout Hertfordshire. The centre 

continued as a training venue for football teams from Royston, Hitchin 

and Bedford. The service being provided by our team has led to 

almost all clubs continuing to use JHN Leisure Centre despite a very 

competitive environment, with many clubs choosing a home that 

they understand to be safe and welcoming. 

Continued implementation of the Quality Management System 

(QMS), combined with an effective service improvement strategy, 

ensured that the centre continued to work towards higher annual 

targets for quality of service to all of our customers. This has 

provided a base for the centre to improve further into 2011/12. 

As with Shephall Leisure Centre, John Henry Newman experienced 

a noticeable drop in children’s activities. By effective use of marketing 

resources coupled with a solid process being provided by the QMS, 

this is an area that has potential to increase in the coming months. 

Although John Henry Newman Leisure Centre has been open for 

many years, it continues to bring in sports enthusiasts from all over 

the county. Clubs continue to renew their bookings at the facility and 

this is a credit to the hard work and commitment of both the centre’s 

team and our partner authority, Stevenage Borough Council. 

The indoor facilities, whilst ageing, remain just as popular with a 

number of sports clubs using the venue as part of their training and 

competitions. A smooth and effortless booking system allows the 

team to meet the additional needs of many of the clubs. 

The centre’s commitment to improving and increasing the provisions 

for sports development in Stevenage, in partnership with Shephall 

Leisure Centre, proved successful throughout the year. 

The centre continued to host sessions for Sport Stevenage, which 

involved a further 49 sessions for children to attend and receive 

sports coaching at great value for money. Participation has been 

excellent with many children developing their skills and competing in 

the Hertfordshire Youth Games. 

Casual usage throughout the year continued to be low and 

unpredictable, however the centre managed to add three new sports 

clubs to its bookings schedule to improve the variety of activities 

available to our customers. 

We continue to work closely with Stevenage School Sports Coordinators 

to ensure the centre is effectively used to host training for 

a wide range of sports, in the build up to the annual Hertfordshire 

Youth Games. 


L E I S U R E 


L E I S U R E 

Knights Templar Sports Centre 

Knights Templar Sports Centre enjoyed a really 

positive year and has gone from strength to strength 

in the face of difficult economic times. 

There has been significant change at the Centre with the 

appointment of a new Centre Manager. The Centre has continued 

to thrive during this, and the success of the year was a reflection of 

the overall performance of all the team. 

Financially, the Centre continued to perform well, again coming in 

better than budget for the year. Usage figures rose (to over 90,000 

in the year) and this was reflected in the financial performance. 

We enjoy a great relationship with the Client Officer for Knights 

Templar School and this is of extreme importance in allowing the 

Centre to achieve its targets and objectives. 

Fitness membership peaked towards the end of the financial year 

at a record high of over 725 members, and averaged 695 for the 

year. This demonstrates the value of the decision to employ a full 

time Customer Advisor, with the improved conversion rates and 

figures really speaking for themselves. The Centre prides itself on its 

community feel and has housed events for clubs like Baldock Town 

Youth and the inaugural Baldock Festival. The Centre has expanded 

the class structure on offer for both non-members and members, 

and we now offer a wider range of classes that have excellent 

occupancy rates. It is important, as a dual-use facility, that we offer 

Junior Memberships for younger people to begin training, and this has 

become extremely popular with our younger members. 

Membership attrition levels are below 6%, which is well below 

the national average. Retention levels are also at 56%, which is an 

improvement on the previous year. The service offered by the fitness 

team in a positive, professional and friendly manner has a lot to do 

with these figures. 

In 2010 we celebrated our tenth anniversary and have grown 

considerably during this period. All members were invited to 

celebrate this landmark occasion at the Centre, together with founder 

members of the centre and representatives from the Knights Templar 

School and SLL. 

Children’s activities continued to grow at the Centre with maximum 

occupancy levels for our Gymnastics Club which continues to grow 

to become one of the best in the area. The implementation of extra 

gymnastic sessions has proved a wise move as all sessions continue 

to be fully booked. Cool Kids Club continues to run successfully 

and new Team Leaders are helping the club develop during holiday 

periods. 

People who make a difference... 

“Lauren is very approachable and is always keen to give any 

advice you may seek. I always find training with her fun and 

challenging. She is always enthusiastic and professional.” 

Ms Sian Field Stanley 

“I was extremely impressed with the Boot Camp programme, 

especially Ginny and Connor’s knowledge and attitude towards 

the customers.” 

Scott Mender 

“Reception staff extremely helpful and friendly, as well as 

informative about new initiatives and classes. Always helpful on 

the telephone too.” 

Steve Blackmore 

“As clients go I am the worst kind, very lazy, so it’s a great credit 

to Hannah that for over a year she managed to get me off the 

couch twice a week, to trampoline, bench press, squat and 

more exercises then I could throw a TV remote at. I couldn’t 

recommend Hannah highly enough.” 

Steve Cole 


L E I S U R E 


L E I S U R E 

Letchworth Outdoor Pool 

The work started on the set up of the outdoor pool 

as early as January, when the management team 

from the North Herts Contract met on a weekly 

basis to organise the set up process ready to open 

between 29th May and 12th September 2010. This 

process involved reviewing all risk assessments, pool 

operating procedures and creating the promotional 

planner for the season. 

Schools and local clubs were included in this 

planner and were contacted in March, booking 

in all available slots for the summer season. 

Advertisements were also placed to promote the 

pool and also to recruit the team. 

The Outdoor Pool celebrated it’s 75th anniversary during the 

summer, therefore numerous events and promotions took place, 

including a community fun day with a 75p entrance fee and a 

celebration for regular customers, councillors and representatives 

from SLL and NHDC which involved birthday cake, champagne and 

speeches detailing the history of the site. 

Following on from the success of operating the café in-house the 

previous summer, SLL worked in partnership with NHDC to secure 

a grant from the Letchworth Area Committee to relocate the 

cafeteria from it’s existing location to an area which would enable it 

to serve both swimming pool customers and those walking through 

Norton Common. The £20k investment was a success, with income 

increasing by 21% for the café throughout the season, (against 

a target increase on 15%) whilst the pool usage remained fairly 

comparable to the previous year. 

Through the good working relationship between SLL and NHDC, 

the pool covers were replaced, funded by surpluses generated the 

previous year, which improved their operation and efficiency. This 

improvement ensures that the pool retains more heat overnight, 

reducing the need for additional gas to maintain the pool at a constant 

temperature. The old pool covers were over 18 years old, therefore 

it is hoped that the initial outlay for the new covers will last for a 

number of years to come. 

The centre performed well financially, considering the weather was 

an average summer, and over 27,000 customers used the pool once 

again. This figure was only 500 short of the previous summer, which 

was one of the best for years. One of the key reasons for this is the 

focus on increasing school groups and club usage. It is hoped that 

this new breed of customers continues to use the pool for years to 

come, ensuring that the town’s best loved facility is used to it’s full 

potential. 


L E I S U R E 

SPLASH 

café 


L E I S U R E 

North Herts Leisure Centre 

The year 2010-11 was once again another 

successful year for North Herts Leisure Centre. 

In the sixth year of the contract, relationships 

and partnerships continued to flourish, enabling 

the centre and contract as a whole to perform 

well against set objectives in terms of community 

engagement, finance, continuous improvement, 

usage and partnership working with the client, 

North Hertfordshire District Council. 

Once again, the difficult economical climate posed a significant 

challenge over the year. However, all members of the centre’s 

team pulled together to create the year’s business plan and set goals 

for all areas. This business plan included objectives identified by all 

stakeholders of the centre and incorporating a number of sources, 

such as our partner’s strategic plans and Sport England surveys, as 

well as SLL’s Corporate Strategy Document. 

Financially, the centre again performed well and returned a healthy 

surplus for the year with excellent performance in areas such as Aqua 

Ed Swim School and annual fitness memberships. Throughout the 

year all aspects of income and expenditure were continually reviewed 

and evaluated to identify the strongly performing areas, and those 

which needed additional focus to ensure that the overall budgeted 

surplus could be achieved. 

In terms of continuous performance, the centre worked towards the 

full Quest assessment that was expected early in the next financial 

year. As part of SLL’s commitment to continuous improvement, 

quarterly Quality Audits were undertaken by Right Directions, 

examining all aspects of service delivery and adherence to procedures 

from the QMS. Once again, an improvement was seen in the average 

score for the site, increasing from 79% to 82% with one audit 

scoring 94%. The importance and continued hard work that goes 

into these audits should be fully rewarded when the results of the 

Quest assessment are announced. We are confident of a high Quest 

score, which will be a testament to the groundwork and commitment 

from all concerned within the centre, and a great indicator of the hard 

work that has been put in over the last year. 

Health and Safety and Pool Safety Audits were also undertaken by 

Right Directions, and a score of 84% was achieved, a figure well 

above the national average when benchmarked against other leisure 

facilities in the UK. 

Another objective in the centre’s business plan was to improve the 

usage for disabled and 60+ groups. This was highlighted as an area 

for improvement from the Sport England Benchmarking survey 

undertaken in the previous year, therefore the action was added to 

the centre’s service improvement strategy. Through working with 

the local Primary Care Trust, an extensive programme for Cardiac 

Rehabilitation, Pulmonary Rehabilitation and Falls Prevention was 

created in the centre. This not only hugely increased the usage of 

that particular demographic, but also strengthened our partnership 

with the PCT, enabling the centre to increase access to funding 

opportunities. 

In terms of energy efficiency and reduction, the centre continued 

to look at ways to reduce its carbon footprint and to reduce costs. 

Corporately, all sites were asked to look at all processes to ensure 

that as a company, SLL’s energy consumption levels fell underneath 

the threshold set by the Carbon Reduction Commitment, which will 

have a huge financial impact on the business. 

SLL completed the year below this threshold, and further discussions 

have been held with NHDC regarding future green projects such as 

LED lighting in the main hall and the sports hall. These works will be 

in addition to the roof works that were completed over the winter 

on the pool hall roof. These roof works included fully re-covering 

the roof and adding insulation to reduce the heat loss from the very 

warm pool hall underneath. It is anticipated that these works will 

return demonstrable year on year savings in terms of finance and gas 

consumption. 

Continued focus on the retention of existing fitness members was 

also supported by the fact that new membership sales hit their 

highest levels since the fitness refurbishment in 2006. Over 1030 

new members were gained throughout 2010-11, which is a fantastic 

achievement in difficult financial times. Through the continued hard 

work from all concerned, member interaction, and the use of the 

contact manager on the wellness system, fitness attrition fell to 

approximately 5% meeting the targets set in the centre’s business 

plan and also under the national average. 

Once again, the value of a successful fitness facility can only really 

be measured by the results of its members, below are a couple of 

examples of these members: 

“Through my regular visits to the gym at North Herts. Leisure 

Centre, I have reduced body fat, became much fitter and lost 4 

and a half stone overall in 8 months.” 

Oliver Collins 

“ I wanted to lose 2 and a half stone in weight and trim up a 

bit and get fit. In fact, through the help, support and fantastic 

facilities, I lost 3 and a half stone, taking me down from 15 and 

a half stone down to 12 stone. As a result I feel much better all 

round and this was all achieved within 8 months.” 

Andy Bateman 

Overall usage for the centre as a whole saw a slight decrease, 

however this can be fully attributed to the school summer holidays 

which were 5 weeks compared to six the previous summer. This 

had an impact on both casual swimming and playscheme income and 

usage as compared to the previous year, however when compared 

to the budget, both areas were on target. One area that did excel 

in terms of usage was the fitness workout classes. Over the year, 

average attendees at classes were over 4,000 per month, compared 


L E I S U R E 

to 3,400 the previous year and 3,000 per month 

the year before that. The reasons for this increase 

are varied, but include excellent instructors, new 

classes and a varied programme. 

In terms of catering, work was carried out 

behind the scenes to develop a proposal 

for profit share investment early in the year 

2011-12. This will include Costa Coffee and 

new seating which will greatly enhance the 

income and customer experience within 

the area. During 2010-11 the café had its 

annual environmental health inspection, 

and improved its scores on the doors food 

hygiene rating from 3 stars to 4 stars. This 

‘very good’ rating is a direct result of the 

hard work put in by the café team and 

their commitment to the FSA’s ‘Safer 

Food, Better Business’ process. 

The Aqua Ed Swim School also 

continued to grow through the year, 

and the scheme has now been 

transferred over to direct debit 

payments. This change of payment 

method is beneficial for both the 

customer and SLL, as customers 

will no longer need to remember 

to pay every ten weeks, thus 

reducing huge queues in 

reception, whilst SLL will have 

a steady stream of income 

and fewer parents to chase 

regarding unpaid lessons. 

Finally, one of the greatest 

achievements of the year 

2010-11 is the contract 

extension awarded to SLL 

from NHDC. This contract 

extension provides SLL 

with two additional 

years to continue the 

excellent work carried 

out at North Herts 

Leisure Centre, and 

the opportunity 

to deliver further 

excellent returns for 

NHDC in terms of 

finance, usage and 

performance. 


L E I S U R E 

Royston Leisure Centre 

Royston Leisure Centre opened on 3rd September 

2005. In December 2009, SLL were successful in 

winning the Management Contract for the Centre, 

and the transfer of Management companies to SLL 

took place on 1st April 2010. 

Prior to this time SLL had undertaken a significant amount of work in 

preparation for what needed to be a smooth and seamless transition 

to ensure minimum disturbance and inconvenience to both centre 

users and the operational team. 

Since the initial transfer and “bedding in period” Royston Leisure 

Centre has continued to develop its policies and procedures in line 

with the SLL QMS and culture, and the team has embraced the 

changes, which are inevitably brought about by such a transition. 

This has been reflected through the strong financial and operational 

performance of the centre. 

Income generated was £50,000 over budget whilst costs were 

controlled and were £17,000 under budget by the year-end. The 

majority of the additional income was in AquaEd Swim School and 

fitness memberships. 

During the year the centre achieved its goals in many areas. 

Operational efficiencies were generated in areas where it was felt 

that customer satisfaction would not be affected, such as reception, 

sales and fitness. The total number of hours saved was 50 per week, 

which brought efficiency savings of over £25,000. The QMS has 

been successfully implemented, as has the AquaEd Swim School. The 

swimming lessons programme was reviewed and updated as this was 

seen as a key area for delivering additional income. This delivered 

approx £6,000 income per annum, and more recent changes in 

February and March of 2011 will deliver even more. 

Alongside the additional income in the AquaEd programme, we 

targeted some other key areas to drive additional revenue through 

the centre. These included a review of resale stock costs and resale 

prices, vending provision price increases where possible, improved 

utilisation of sports hall during off peak periods by better promotions 

of this area, and additional personal training sessions being undertaken 

through the fitness team. 

leading facility (which has been with over SLL for a significantly longer 

period), whilst the most recent Health & Safety audit saw a score of 

90% achieved, which is the highest score ever by an SLL facility, and 

the highest score that the assessor has ever given at any facility. 

New pool covers and PIR lighting were successfully installed in an 

effort to reduce utility consumption. 

The centre continued to develop some close partnerships, which 

assist in the delivery of the mission statement and company goals. 

These include our partner authority North Herts District Council, the 

Extended Schools Co-Coordinator for Royston (who has provided 

funding for special activity sessions for underprivileged children), 

Royston Youth Network, Sport Royston, Sport North Herts, and the 

East and North Herts PCT (who has funded training for GP referral, 

postural stability and phase 4 cardiac rehabilitation). 

The current economical climate had an effect on some areas of 

operation within the centre, with a reduction in non-essential 

spending from certain customer types that use the facility. Schools 

have also had their budgets cut and this has impacted on pool hire 

and sports hall hire by the local schools. A positive message mission 

is being put in place to try to get schools to return to the facility, and 

links with the extended schools should bring in additional income for 

schools to use the facility. 

Usage was almost retained at previous levels, with only a 0.5% 

decrease in overall users throughout 2010-11. The centre 

management team have come up with development plans and ideas 

to combat this downturn, and ensure usage is retained in 2011-12. 

The success of the centre has generated a sizeable profit share fund. 

This fund is to be used for facility enhancements and customer facing 

projects. It is hoped to put some of this money in the coming year 

to energy reduction initiatives, and improvements to the plant and 

equipment when necessary. 

The facility has continued to deliver exceptional customer service and 

retain it’s standing within the community. Staffing levels have been 

retained and low numbers of employees have left since April 2010, 

which is a good indicator of employee satisfaction levels. This must be 

seen as a great achievement during a period of transition and change. 

Royston also scored particularly well with regards to audits. The 

QMS quality audit score of 88% was only a few % behind the 


L E I S U R E 

fitness @ royston 



L E I S U R E 

Sandy Sports Centre 

Sandy Sports Centre enjoyed a successful year 

of operation through a commitment to the 

implementation of clear systems of work, delivering 

efficient and reliable customer service to over 

111,000 visitors during the year. 

Continuous improvement was also delivered and monitored by 

means of Quality Audits and Mystery Visits from Right Directions. A 

steady increase in scores from these audits indicated that the centre 

was succeeding in its ongoing strive for excellence, measuring an 

average score of 72%. This is a good indicator of how the centre will 

perform in the next Quest Assessment, which is scheduled to take 

place in 2011-12 

The announcement by Central Bedfordshire Council (CBC) to close 

the centre was made in December 2010. The Management Team 

identified possible savings that could be made, working with partners, 

to enable the centre to stay open to the community in the future. As 

a result, a saving of £51,000 was made, which included contributions 

from Sandy Town Council, Sandy Sports & Leisure Association and 

Sandy Upper School, giving the centre another year to operate 

until the end of the contract. During this period CBC appointed a 

consultant to consult with all the stakeholders and to report back to 

the Council with recommendations on how further savings could be 

made. 

The centre’s Quest maintenance visit took place late on in the 

financial year, with a very positive report completed as a result, along 

with suggestions as to how the centre could improve even further, 

given its uncertain future. Again, all areas for improvement were 

logged on the service improvement strategy to ensure that action was 

taken as soon as possible. 

The difficult economical climate had an significant effect on some 

areas of operation within the centre, with a reduction in non-essential 

spending from certain customer types of the facility. The main areas 

affected by this were gym memberships and workout classes at the 

beginning of the financial year. The team worked hard, and devised 

and implemented an action plan, to ensure that income and unit 

targets were achieved during the second part of the year. 

The team formed a working group to re-launch a new workout 

programme towards the end of the financial year as income and 

usage was poor under the existing timetable. In February 2011, the 

centre successfully increased the programme from 10 classes to 23 

classes per week increasing usage from 32% to 51% and income 

trebled against budget. 

Overall the year was successful operationally and financially, enabling 

the centre to provide an excellent service for its customers, 

communities and client at Central Bedfordshire Council. 

What our customers said... 

“I have multiple sclerosis and I am definitely more mobile since 

coming to the gym. The gym equipment is easy to use for a 

beginner. I am pleased with the improvement I have made. 

It is very handy to access from my house, the gym is reasonably 

priced, and has very long opening hours which is convenient for 

me. 

The staff at Sandy are always very friendly and willing to help.” 

June Simkins 

“Since coming to the gym I have achieved a better all-round 

fitness, as well as losing weight! The TGS system helps me 

considerably in measuring my performance. The gym equipment 

is adequate for my requirements. The biggest benefits of coming 

here are maintaining a level of fitness and sustaining a healthy 

lifestyle. It is also excellent value for money. I have definitely 

made better progress than I expected. I would also like to add 

that it is always a pleasant experience at the gym, all the staff 

should be complemented on making this possible.” 

Gordon Beale 


L E I S U R E 

lifestyles @ sandy 

...be healthy 


L E I S U R E 

Saxon Pool & Leisure Centre 

Saxon Pool and Leisure Centre continued to both 

attract new customers to the facility and retain 

regular customers during 2010 / 2011. 

Mid Beds Swim Squad continued to boast impressive achievements 

during 2010 / 2011 and is recognised as both one of the top clubs 

in the region and at a national level. Harriet Lee was crowned SB9 

Paralympic Breaststroke World Champion and European Record 

holder in June 2011. 

Lifestyles Café launched a new Healthy Eating approach and 

increased it’s income by 17% as compared to 2009/2010. 

Lifestyles @ Saxon’s fitness memberships show the effectiveness 

of the facilities with 1,393 Direct Debit members and 161 annual 

members. 2010/2011 saw the launch of Personal Training at Saxon 

Pool and Leisure Centre and are now training 32 members on a one 

to one basis. 

The centre continued to cater for all sectors of the community: 

Alex Hughes joined Lifestyles@Saxon to improve his fitness and 

strength 

“My aim when I started using the gym, at the age of 16, was 

to improve my fitness and increase my strength and weight for 

playing rugby. 

Saxon Pool and Leisure Centre runs a well established Cardiac 

Rehabilitation group when has continued to increase in numbers in 

2010/2011. 

“It was quite a shock having a heart attack after retiring at 65 

because my family thought I was reasonably fit. 

After having a good recovery and completing the hospital Cardiac 

Rehab program for 10 weeks, I was feeling fitter and they 

recommended I keep it up. 

That was when I joined Saxon Pool and Leisure Centre’s Cardiac 

Rehab Group. It is not expensive and good fun as you are looked 

after by some great staff and make some good friends. 

I am creeping towards 70 now and am a lot fitter. Instead of 

taking 7 tablets a day, I now take 2 at a very low dose. 

I always think that the fitter you can keep yourself, the better 

your chances, if anything nasty comes along!” 

STAN 

2010 / 11 saw a significant decrease in casual swimming following 

the end of the Government funded Free Swimming campaign. The 

centre is now working with the Amateur Swimming Association on a 

number of schemes to increase swimming participation. 

I am so pleased with the results, my progress is amazing. 

Throughout my time at Saxon I have met some really nice 

people, who have made the whole experience a better one. The 

environment and atmosphere there is really relaxed. 

The fitness team are always willing to help, encourage and 

motivate.” 

Alex Hughes 

Alex continues to workout at Lifestyles@saxon on a regular basis He 

is currently undergoing work experience with the gym instructors 

before he commences his Gym Instructor and Personal Trainer 

Qualification Courses in 2011/2012. 


L E I S U R E 

lifestyles @ saxon 

...be healthy 

Harriet Lee – World Champion 

SB9 100m Breastroke. 

Harriet, who trains with Mid 

Beds Swim Squad at Saxon 

Pool & Leisure Centre, is a 

teacher in Saxon’s AquaEd 

learn to swim programme. 


L E I S U R E 

Shephall Leisure Centre 

Shephall Leisure Centre continued to prove an asset 

to the local community, providing opportunities for 

all to access a high standard of sporting and fitness 

facilities, coupled with great service and value for 

money. 

Despite welcoming slightly fewer visitors in 2010/11 

than in previous years, 51,000 users of the centre 

were greeted with a wide diversity of activities, in a 

safe and welcoming environment. 

The centre continued a trend to increase the provisions available for 

all users of the community. The range of activities available appealed 

and encouraged all ages, from fitness classes for local teens through 

to trampolining sessions open to adults. 

The relationship between Barnwell School and Shephall Leisure 

Centre continued to be successful, with students from the school 

continuing to take advantage of our fantastic facilities in the Fitness 

Suite as well as our studio and sports hall. 

The centre provided opportunities for younger members of the 

community to engage in sport and fitness, with the Wildcat gym 

membership (aimed at students) continuing to be a very popular 

choice. Children’s holiday activities and birthday parties dropped 

somewhat, however a push in these areas in the coming months 

should bring these areas back on track. 

Although the centre had a tough year, Shephall is well placed to be 

successful in 2011/12 on all fronts, and continue to be an asset to the 

community. 

Fitness classes are hosted in the centre’s Dance Studio, with a 

programme that any centre would be proud of. With this foundation 

in place, the centre is now striving to increase participation in this area 

to all in the community. 

Sports Development continued to be a strength of Shephall Leisure 

Centre. A number of long established sports clubs use Shephall as 

their base, with participation and membership within these clubs 

thriving. The centre appeals to all abilities in line with the Sport 

England ‘Start, Stay, Succeed’ pathways in providing opportunities for 

all. The centre played host to a number of competitions including 

county and regional badminton events for both men and women. 

We continued to work closely with Stevenage School Sports Coordinators 

to ensure that the centre was effectively used to host 

training for a wide range of sports in the build up to the annual 

Hertfordshire Youth Games. 

The small, but comprehensively equipped fitness suite continued to 

offer great facilities in the heart of the Stevenage residential area, with 

fitness members continually satisfied with the facilities and equipment 

available. 

The centre successfully managed to improve its Quest score by two 

percentage points to a ‘highly commended’ score of 75%. 


L E I S U R E 

fitness @ shephall 



L E I S U R E 

Stevenage Golf and Conference Centre 

Stevenage Golf & Conference Centre endured 

a difficult year financially due to the downturn in 

golf throughout the country. Memberships have 

remained static with most categories remaining 

steady. The Centre welcomed over 37,000 visitors 

over the year, with the main focus on being able 

to offer the community an improving facility that 

offers attractive prices and flexible methods of 

payment. The Season Ticket Membership still offers 

outstanding value for money, for both Junior and 

Senior Golfers, who have benefited from a highly 

attractive price since its introduction. Stevenage 

Golf & Conference Centre continues to achieve its 

aims of providing an excellent golfing facility that is 

economically accessible to a wide range of people. 

The Golf Shop underperformed during the year, and this led to a 

review of the range of brands that were stocked. The Golf Shop 

will continue to stock many of the leading brands, whilst in addition 

brands that are up and coming will be offered at a reduced price to 

try and increase sales throughout future years. Stevenage Golf & 

Conference Centre remains an authorised Titleist fitting centre, and 

this improves its status and credibility amongst the golfing public. 

The Halfway House has continued to be used the major events 

during the year, and has also acted as the home for the on-course 

rangers. This has proved to be a real asset providing hot and cold 

drinks. Extending the opening hours for the future remains a priority 

so that the golfers can use the Halfway House at their convenience. 

The Stevenage Golf Club celebrated its 30th year in style, with a 

national title as winners of the NAPGC Clapham Common Platinum 

Shield, held at Western Park Golf Club, Leicester. 

Stevenage Golf & Conference Centre has continued to be a 

preferred venue for local residents to use for all of their special 

occasions. The dedicated events/functions team have ensured that 

the reputation for exceptional customer care and service continues 

to grow year on year. A varied and versatile events programme 

has proved successful with all the patrons of Stevenage Golf & 

Conference Centre, with customers already confirming bookings for 

2012 and 2013. The income generated from food and beverage is 

a crucial part of the business, and has made a huge difference to the 

Golf Centre’s performance. 

Stevenage Leisure Limited continues to monitor the Grounds 

Maintenance Contract. This has again been a difficult process to 

manage with several changes to personnel within the Grounds 

Maintenance team. Keeping resources focussed on the specification 

during the year has been extremely challenging at times, and 

unfortunately the golf course condition suffered due to an application 

error in the winter. Improvements to the golf course were made as 

a result of major reactive works carried out by an outside contractor. 

A continued structured improvement plan has been implemented for 

the golf course, which will enable the course to continue to improve 

in future years. 

The Indoor Golf School once again proved to be an asset. The 

number of people taking lessons again increased, resulting in annual 

income of over £43k from coaching. Many of those who have 

started their golfing lives at Stevenage in recent years are now 

playing in competitions being held on the main Stevenage Course. 

Junior golfers continue to develop and, through the Stevenage 

Golf Academy, there is now a clear progression pathway for them 

to follow resulting in them playing on the main Stevenage course. 

The Golf Centre is very committed to the local community and 

operates a policy of social inclusion. We are particularly proud to have 

associations with several groups of disadvantaged people that now 

stretch back over several years. 

The Golf Centre remains heavily focused on delivering the highest 

standards of customer experiences, and enormous efforts have been 

made to improve the standards of service provided. An additional 

post of Assistant Front of House was added this year to ensure that 

the level of service provided continues. All of the team are fully 

committed to further enhancing the reputation of the Golf Centre 

and, as a result, the quality of the facility has improved greatly. It is 

expected that this will continue, and that the Golf Centre will remain 

as one of the premier facilities in Hertfordshire. 


L E I S U R E 


L E I S U R E 

Stevenage Swimming Centre 

Stevenage Swimming Centre continued with its service 

improvement strategy, building upon its much improved 

and ‘highly commended’ Quest score by achieving 

a new improved assessment of 77% in March, and 

welcomed over 211,000 visitors over the year. 

POOL 

With the cuts introduced by the new Coalition Government the Free 

Swimming Programme, run in partnership with Stevenage Borough 

Council, for those aged 16 years and under and the over 60’s was 

stopped in July 2010. This was a Government funded initiative and 

placed an even bigger demand on the centre, with the introduction 

of 1 hourly sessions necessary to allow all users to have fair access to 

swimming times. By the end of July 2010 the Centre had registered 

over 30,000 free swim visits. With the withdrawal of funding, the 

attendance dropped considerably and even after promotional 

campaigns the Centre saw a big drop on income for casual swimming 

In conjunction with SLL’s other pools, Stevenage Swimming Centre 

was involved in the continuing roll out of the new AquaEd brand and 

standardised swim school procedures across all sites. The 10-week 

Aqua Ed swimming programme, in addition to supplying parents 

with progress reports on a regular basis, continued to be a successmaintaining 

an average course attendance of 1,150 members. 

Ascent Training Centre 

The Training Centre underwent a rebranding during the year and 

is now called the ASCENT Training Centre with a new brochure 

and web site. Progress was also made on the Training Centre 

Programme. From April 2010 the centre continued to provide a 

comprehensive range of courses from lifeguard training, teaching 

courses, the IOSH ‘Managing Safely’ qualification to ISRM supervisory 

modules, and also began to run Active IQ Fitness qualification 

courses. The Centre maintained its Approved Training Centre status. 

This area is now providing a sustained contribution to the centre’s 

overall profitability, as well as reducing the company’s overall training 

costs. 

training today’s professionals 

Ascent 

TrAining CenTre 

The centre has continued to benefit from the addition of competition 

standard diving boards, which are now being used for national 

competitions and lessons. 


continued... 


L E I S U R E 

Ascent 

Training Centre 


L E I S U R E 

Stevenage Swimming Centre continued... 

The Wellness Centre 

The Wellness Centre enjoyed another successful year with The 

Methesis Spa again proving to be an asset to the Swimming Centre 

as an effective sales tool for memberships, exceeding targets and 

achieving over 220 members. 

Pamper Parties continued to prove popular with groups of friends 

who wish to hire the facilities for 2-3 hours to celebrate special 

occasions. These groups are able to use the Spa and enjoy 2 

treatments with the resident therapists. 

The Kinesis timetable continued to expand, covering a wide range of 

sessions. There are now 22 instructor-led sessions, and many open 

sessions available, which include: 

• Kinesis Circuits 

• Senior Circuits 

• Beginners Circuits 

• Pilates K (Pilates performed using Kinesis modules) 

• Yoga 

• Pilates 

• Back Care Course with referrals from Triage from 2 local 

hospitals. (The Wellness Centre’s Back Care Course, open 

to members and non-members was written by the Wellness 

Manager, Juanita Duffett, and the Senior Kinesis Consultant 

Tom Pena). 

• Falls Prevention with links to the PCT. 

Plans are underway to create a wheelchair based Kinesis class, and a 

pre-school yoga class. 

The Wellness Manager delivered regular promotions within local 

organisations focusing on the health benefits from using the facilities 

at the Wellness Centre, especially coping with stress and improving 

back care. 

The Wellness Manager has also developed a working relationship 

with local hotels, such as the Holiday Inn and Ramada Cromwell. 

Wellness literature is exhibited within the reception areas and on TV’s 

within rooms, with a discounted rate is offered to their residents. 

Talks are underway for other hotels to follow. The opportunity to 

attend hotels during conferences is being discussed to promote 

relaxation techniques and to offer massage. 


L E I S U R E 

W 

the wellness 

centre 


O P E R AT I O N S 

The Operations team enjoyed another successful 

year. The main focus of the year was to increase 

both the customer experience and the overall 

profitability of SLL. 

The Operations team implemented a number of initiatives 

throughout to help to achieve this goal including: 

• Training sessions on customer service for all Centre Managers 

• Sales training 

• Quarterly quality reviews with all Centre and Contract 

Managers 

• Regular review of Key Performance Indicators 

• Mystery shops 

• Quality and unannounced audits 

• Continuing to share best practice 

• Operational training courses 

The high levels of operational performance have been due to the 

drive and commitment of the centre teams and their ability to take 

ownership. This has been demonstrated by improving audit and 

Quest scores. 

This year also saw successful the integration of two new centres into 

the SLL portfolio with Hitchin Swimming Centre & Archers Health 

and Fitness and Royston Leisure Centre. 

Operationally SLL achieved 2.8 million visits this year compared 

to 2.1 million in the previous year, an increase in footfall of over 

700,000. 

Area 

Visits 

2009/10 

Visits 

2010/11 

Increase 

SALC Theatre 126,788 131,449 4,661 

Outdoor Activities 163,971 168,740 4,769 

Dry side Activities 314,121 428,631 114,510 

Fitness 554,286 744,150 189,864 

Fitness Members 7,000 10,273 3,273 

Casual Swimming 413,297 643,298 230,001 

Swimming Lessons 222,885 307,825 84,940 


A huge amount of work has been undertaken at Stevenage Arts and 

Leisure Centre. The centre’s Management Team have analysed all 

costs and reorganised accordingly, to make efficiency savings whilst 

driving income through sales initiatives and contract deals with all 

performers. 

AquaEd 

The AquaEd Swim School continues to go from strength to strength, 

through the AquaEd forum at which Managers and Coordinators 

meet regularly to share best practice. 

The addition of the Hitchin and Royston centres has given us more 

opportunities to develop AquaEd. AquaEd members at these centres 

pay by direct debit and as a direct result of the new contract we are 

now working towards the introduction of direct debit payments for 

AquaEd at North Herts Leisure Centre, and we will be looking to 

introduce this option at all centres. 

Fitness 

The fitness forum has continued to share best practice, and is driving 

fitness corporately. Monthly Key Performance Indicators for the 

fitness area are collated and include: personal training, attrition and 

usage comparing actual to targets. New procedures for the fitness 

operation are also discussed allowing input from all managers. 

Sales training 

This year saw the second year of the two-year training plan cascaded 

through all sales teams. Total new fitness sales (excluding Hitchin and 

Royston) increased by approximately 2,000 units. 

Quality Management System (QMS) 

The QMS is an ongoing project; managers continue to meet on a 

quarterly basis to review procedures to ensure all procedures are up 

to date. 

The quarterly audit system continues to give very useful feedback 

on the operational delivery at each centre. The format and scoring 

of these audits changed this year, with the process now including 

an unannounced audit, which aims to give a true reflection on the 

use of the Quality Management System in each centre. The average 

score for this unannounced audit was 72%. Included within the audit 


O P E R AT I O N S 

schedule are mystery visits and all centres continued to perform well 

with the average score remaining constant to last year, even though 

the scoring criteria have changed. 

Quest, the UK quality scheme for sports and leisure, remains the 

definitive standard for the management of sports and leisure facilities. 

The average Quest score for SLL’s registered centres has risen to 

80% with all centres rated as ‘highly commended’, and two centres 

achieving ‘Excellent’ status. 

Rutland County Council (RCC) contract tender for 

Catmose Sports Centre 

During 2010 the tender process dialogue was undertaken with RCC 

for the management of the Catmose Sports Centre. Writing the final 

specification involved a lot of work from all of the operations team. 

This also included putting together a comprehensive implementation 

programme for the commencement of the contract on 1st April 

2011. 

Increased secondary spend 

We continued to work with Zoggs and GlaxoSmithKline as suppliers 

of retail stock, the former supplying mostly retail items for swimming 

pools such as goggles and swimming costumes, and the latter 

supplying Lucozade products. This has helped SLL to increase sales 

of secondary spend items. Sales of Lucozade products increased by 

35% and Zoggs products by 28% 

Pictured are some of the winners of the 2010/11 Operational Excellence Awards. 


E N V I R O N M E N TA L 

Stevenage Leisure Ltd recognises that many of 

its activities provide an important opportunity to 

protect and improve the environment in which we 

work and serve, and is focussed on managing and 

reducing the environmental impacts of our own 

businesses and that of our partners. 

The company therefore attributes a high priority to 

the development and use of materials, products, 

processes and services that seek to reduce 

environmental damage and waste. We expect and 

encourage our business partners, sub-contractors 

and major suppliers to share our concern for the 

environment, and to work with us in identifying and 

applying best practice. 

We completed an annual review of the SLL policies: 

• Environment 

• CSR 

• Energy and have introduced targets for this period 

We have added to our documents the F Gas policy to comply with 

“The Fluorinated Greenhouse Gases Regulations 2009” (Statutory 

Instrument No 261), applied from 9th March 2009. 

Energy and Carbon reduction 

The Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) was a major driver 

to help reduce our half hourly electrical consumption to below the 

6,000 Mwh target for base year 2010 for phase 2. For phase 1 we 

were only at the notifiable level, this was completed before the 

deadline. 

SLL HHM Electricity / CRC Target 

Actual 

CRC Target 

The Coalition Government are looking to simplify the process for 

companies, but it is felt this may just end up a carbon tax. 

SLL has developed energy projects, which are awaiting approval 

at the time of writing. The automatic meter reading project has 

progressed well, and it is planned to have all three services monitored 

by August 2011. 

We are still closely monitoring the consumption of SLL utilities and 

targets have been set for gas and electricity based on the CIBSE 

Energy publication TM44, that gives the ability to compare centres 

based on type and size of the facility. 

The level of recycling of our waste peaked at 99.9%, during this year, 

with the average figure at 98.6% for the last 6 months, thanks to the 

Materials Recycling Facility (MRF) in Luton. 


F A C I L I T I E S M A N A G E M E N T 

Corporate Facilities continued to play an active 

strategic role to deliver continuous improvement 

within SLL and compliance to all relevant legislation. 

The complexity of the role necessitated balancing 

the strategic and operational aspects of Facilities 

Management with limited resources and funds. 

The main areas of FM continued to be: 

• Project work 

• Legislation- both current and pending 

• Health and Safety 

• Environmental Management 

• Energy and Utilities 

• Monitoring of FM contracts 

We continued to work on the development of the CAFM (computer 

aided facilities management) system; as a result we now have webbased 

access. 

All of the corporate policies were reviewed and updated. We also 

reviewed the Portable Appliance testing (PAT) policy and produced 

monitoring procedures for fire doors and electrical visual installations 

to comply with BS 7671. 

The Business Continuity plan was also reviewed, and contractor and 

emergency contact lists updated. 

All of the FM contracts were re-tendered for a 3-year period; end 

date now is 31st March 2014. 

The 2010 register of legal requirements was updated and issued to 

the Centres, to ensure they were fully aware of their responsibilities. 

The Display Energy Certificates (DEC’s) were completed for year 3 

of the process on program for all the Centres above 1,000m2. We 

continued to monitor the technical press, as there is a strong feeling 

that the sizes of the buildings included within the scheme will be 

reduced to 500m2, and will also include commercial buildings. 

We continued to develop and work on the following projects: 

• Hitchin and Royston start up 

• The new Rutland contract (Catmose Sports Centre) 

• Condition surveys for both CBC and SBC. 

• Condition survey projects for SBC 

• SALC new main hall seating 

• SALC ground floor ladies toilets 

• SALC Car Park Barrier 

• Air Conditioning surveys 

• Stevenage Town Centre fountain 

The cost of utilities continues to be an issue for SLL and we have 

been working to reduce and mitigate the impact of these rising costs. 

We have reviewed the purchasing products available, but at the 

moment we are focused on purchasing into the future to give some 

stability. 

With regards to the half hourly electricity sites, we have contracts to 

2013 at a lower rate than 2009, while the non-half hourly and gas 

contracts are in place until the end of 2011. We are continuing to 

work with EnergyQuote, reviewing the market and options for the 

best deals. 

A large part of the stability in utility costs must be by reducing 

consumption, and the actions we are taking in this area are 

mentioned in the Environmental report, with AMR being the key. 

We also monitored any new legislation and any changes in existing 

legislation which may have an impact on SLL, e.g. 

• F Gas regulations – all in place and also part of M&E ppm 

contract 

• CRC – uncertainty of how this will operate in the future 

• Air Conditioning inspections – first year completed and report 

produced 


H E A L T H & S A F E T Y 

The company’s Health & Safety structure was 

revised this year to reflect its importance, with 

the introduction of a new corporate team, which 

includes all the Management Team and Section 

Managers. This team is focused on driving health 

& safety at a strategic level, and ensuring that 

improvements are delivered in all areas. 

The Section Managers are tasked to ensure that health & safety 

is delivered through their contracts and centres. Revised terms of 

reference were produced for both the Corporate and Contract 

teams. 

The H&S policy was reviewed and updated in December 2010 as 

part of the review process, the changes reflected the organisation 

structure. 

During this year we produced the following policies and these were 

placed onto the SLLnet: 

• Legionella 

• Asbestos 

Audits 

We had a mixed set of results for building and pool audits for 2010, 

mainly due to the tightening of the audit process. 

The accidents and incidents continued on the same trend as previous 

years, and are minor cuts, bruises and minor head injuries, which, 

year on year, show no serious injury pattern. Our aim continues to 

be to reduce the minor injuries but this will be a major task in leisure 

facilities due to the activities undertaken, and we now produce 

monthly spot diagrams to try and indentify any trends. 

Heath and Safety team 

The team continued to drive H&S by looking for continuous 

improvements in all areas and reviewed the impact of the April and 

October HSE legislation changes to SLL. 

The areas reviewed were: 

• Team communication 

• Noise Testing 

• Legionella Management 

• Asbestos Management 

• Fire systems and risk assessment 

• Lone Working 

• Travelling between sites 

• Safe and Sound Programme (HSE) 

• Fit Notes 

• Health & Safety Signage 

The average company results were as follows: 

• Building 64% 

• Pool 81% 

The actions from the audits were added to each centre’s service 

improvement strategies for completion based on their level of 

importance. 

Accidents and Incidents 

The level of accidents and incidents relating to both customers and 

employees continued to remain low at 46 per 100,000 users for 

2010, compared to a HSE benchmark figure for the same period 

of 840 per 100,000 users. We had a total of 4 RIDDORS, which 

equates to 0.15 per 100,000 users against an HSE report figure of 

473 per 100,000. 


F I N A N C E 

Company Information 

Directors 

R A Gochin (Chairman) 

I Morton (Executive Director) 

P Raine 

S Crudgington 

D Williams 

J M Salisbury 

I Paske 

Company number 03446357 

Registered office 

Auditors 

Bankers 

Stevenage Arts and Leisure Centre 

Lytton Way 


Herts SG1 1LZ 

Wagstaffs 

Richmond House 

Walkern Road 


Herts SG1 3QP 

HSBC Bank Plc 

Town Centre 

Danestrete 


Herts SG1 1BY 


F I N A N C E 

Director’s Responsibilities 

The directors are responsible for preparing the Directors’ Report 

and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and 

regulations. 

Company law requires the directors to prepare financial statements 

for each financial year. Under that law the directors have elected 

to prepare the financial statements in accordance with United 

Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (United Kingdom 

Accounting Standards and applicable law). Under company law the 

directors must not approve the financial statements unless they are 

satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the 

company and of the profit or loss of the company for that year. In 

preparing these financial statements, the directors are required to: 

• select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently; 

• make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and 

prudent; 

• prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis 

unless it is inappropriate to presume that the company will 

continue in business. 

The directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting 

records that are sufficient to show and explain the company’s 

transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the 

financial position of the company and enable them to ensure that 

the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They 

are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the company and 

hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of 

fraud and other irregularities. 

In so far as the directors are aware: 

• there is no relevant audit information (information needed 

by the company’s auditors in connection with preparing their 

report) of which the company’s auditors are unaware, and 

• the directors have taken all the steps that they ought to 

have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit 

information and to establish that the company’s auditors are 

aware of that information. 

Independent auditors 

Wags LLP t/a Wagstaffs are deemed to be reappointed in accordance 

with Section 487(2) of the Companies Act 2006. 

Directors’ Report 

The directors present their report and the financial statements for the 

year ended 31 March 2011. 

Principal activity and review of 

the business 

The principal activity of the company during the year was the 

provision of sporting, cultural, arts, events and leisure opportunities 

for the benefit of the communities within the Stevenage, Central 

Bedfordshire, North Hertfordshire, and Hertfordshire County 

Council regions. 

Results for the year 

The total operating profit before FRS17 pension costs was £305,520. 

The total recognised gains since the last annual report amount to 

£143,277 as outlined on page 66. 

Financial risk management 

objectives and policies 

The company’s operations expose it to a variety of financial risks that 

include liquidity risk and to ensure business continuity, the company 

has in place a risk management programme that seeks to limit the 

adverse effects on the financial performance of the company by 

continuous monitoring of these levels of risks. 

The directors deal with the company’s health and safety and risk 

management, by inviting the management team to attend the board 

meetings and specifically report on any relevant issues that the board 

need to be aware of. 

The department has a policy and procedures manual that sets out 

specific guidelines to manage these financial risks. In addition, the 

company has also adopted a single point failure document to ensure 

business continuity. 

This report was approved by the Board on 27th September 2011 

and signed on its behalf by 

Roger Gochin 

Chairman 


F I N A N C E 

Corporate governance 

The directors periodically review the operations, management, and 

ethos of the company and implement changes where appropriate. 

Over recent years the company has made significant gains in 

its financial, representational and business roles. The directors 

acknowledge the benefits that are to be gained from good corporate 

governance and are mindful of their responsibility to monitor 

developments and implement changes where necessary. 

During 2010/11 there was a company review, which examined 

the rolls of Company Members, Board Directors and the Senior 

Management Team. As such, it was agreed not to have separate 

Company Members and Non-Executive Directors’ and that all Board 

Members would have this dual function going forward. At the time 

of writing, the Board consists of eight Directors, seven of whom are 

Non-Executive (There is one vacancy), with the company’s Managing 

Director being the Executive Director. The Board meets at least 

six times per year. There is also a Nominations & Remuneration 

Committee and an independent Audit Committee, which meet 

periodically. 

Directors 

The directors who served during the year are as stated below: 

R A Gochin (Chairman) 

I Morton (Executive Director) 

R Hawkes (Resigned 31/08/2010) 

P Raine 

I Paske 

S Crudgington 

J M Salisbury 

D Williams 

The review of the Senior Management Team resulted in reducing 

the number of Directors on the Management Team from five to four. 

The team now comprises: Managing Director, Operations Director, 

Marketing Director, and Facilities Director. 

It was further determined that whilst Stevenage Leisure Limited 

is a non profit distributing organisation (NPDO) and a Company 

Limited by Guarantee (CLG), it would be appropriate to cement 

the company’s charitable purposes ethos by applying for Charitable 

Status. This legal process will therefore be undertaken during 2011. 

Employment policy 

The company gives full consideration to applications for employment 

from disabled persons where the requirements of the job can be 

adequately fulfilled by a handicapped or disabled person. 

Where existing employees become disabled, it is the company policy 

wherever practicable to provide continuing employment under 

normal terms and conditions and to provide training and career 

development and promotion to disabled employees wherever 

appropriate. 

Consultation with employees or their representatives has continued 

at all levels, with the aim of ensuring that their views are taken 

into account when decisions are made that are likely to affect their 

interests and that all employees are aware of the financial and 

economic performance of their business units and of the company 

as a whole. Communication with all employees continues through 

the in-house newsletters. In addition, the company has a formal 

consultation procedure in place to enable employees to express their 

views directly with the human resources department. 


FH I NE ADN ICN EG 

Summary Profit and Loss Account 

Year Ended 31st March 2011 

2011 2010 

£ £ 

Turnover 14,344,875 11,638,140 

Cost of sales (2,723,992) (2,282,208) 

Gross profit 11,620,883 9,355,932 

Administrative expenses (11,498,731) (9,277,621) 

Operating profit 122,152 78,311 

Other interest receivable and similar income 488,368 310,594 

Interest payable and similar charges (573,000) (394,852) 

Profit/(loss) on ordinary activities before taxation 37,520 (5,947) 

Tax on profit/(loss) on ordinary activities (17,443) 911 

Profit/(loss) for the year 20,077 (5,036) 

Statement of total recognised gains and losses 

Profit/(loss) on ordinary activities after taxation 20,077 (5,036) 

Actuarial gain in respect of defined benefit pension scheme 154,000 20,000 

Movement on deferred tax relating to pension liability (30,800) (4,200) 

Total recognised gains/losses since last annual report 143,277 10,764 

66 Annual Report 2010/11 


HF IEN AAD NI NC GE 

Summary Balance Sheet 


2011 2010 

£ £ £ £ 

Fixed assets 

Tangible assets 697,426 762,465 

Current assets 

Stocks 108,592 89,837 

Debtors 742,745 714,115 

Cash at bank and in hand 1,214,053 633,701 

2,065,390 1,437,653 

Creditors: amounts falling 

due within one year (2,469,868) (2,026,536) 

Net current liabilities (404,478) (588,883) 

Total assets less current liabilities 292,948 173,582 

Provisions for liabilities (10,129) – 

Net assets excluding pension asset 282,819 173,582 

Pension liability / (asset) (626,400) (660,440) 

Deficiency of assets (343,581) (486,858) 

Members’ funds (343,581) (486,858) 



FHI NE A ND CI NE 

G 

Summary Cash Flow Statement 


2011 2010 

£ £ 

Reconciliation of operating profit to net 

cash inflow from operating activities 

Operating profit 122,152 78,311 

Depreciation 314,066 285,525 

(Increase) in stocks (18,755) (2,078) 

(Increase) in debtors (47,287) (30,242) 

Increase in creditors 443,380 267,023 

Provision for service cost of defined benefit pension scheme 141,000 99,000 

Other defined benefit scheme current service cost 40,000 42,000 

Defined benefit pension scheme contributions paid (167,000) (249,000) 

Net cash inflow from operating activities 827,556 490,539 

Cash flow statement 

Net cash inflow from operating activities 827,556 490,539 

Returns on investments and servicing of finance 2,368 1,742 

Taxation (545) (4,357) 

Capital expenditure (249,027) (265,869) 

Increase in cash in the year 580,352 222,055 

Reconciliation of net cash flow to movement in net funds 

Increase in cash in the year 580,352 222,055 

New finance leases and hire purchase contracts – 19,834 

Movement in net funds in the year 580,352 241,889 

Net funds at 1 April 2010 633,701 391,812 

Net funds at 31 March 2011 1,214,053 633,701 

The financial statements were approved by the Board and authorised for issue 

on 27th September 2011 and signed on its behalf by 

Roger Gochin 

Chairman 

Ian Morton 

Managing Director 



T H E AF DU ITN UG 

R E 

SLL has continued to develop and grow successfully 

through delivering an inclusive range of community 

focused leisure and cultural activities, at value for 

money prices. Looking ahead, SLL can face a difficult 

future with optimism, and will work hard with its 

local authority partners to remain at the heart of 

the community, ideally placed to be part of ‘The Big 

Society’ and the local commissioning of services. 

We recognise the emergence and importance of the health agenda 

and the responsibilities that this places on our local authority partners, 

and we will be at the heart of local and national initiatives, working 

with key stakeholders in the development of wellbeing, illness 

prevention, health awareness and health promotion for all the local 

community. 

SLL will be focused on the opening and first year of operation at the 

new Catmose Sports Centre in Oakham, and also further integrate 

Hitchin Swimming Centre and Royston Leisure Centre into the 

company, building on their success in the first year of the contract. 

During the coming year, we will: 

• cement the company’s charitable aims by updating the articles 

of association and applying for charitable status. 

• continue to explore other leisure management contract 

opportunities as they become available. 

• look to grow organically with our existing clients through the 

provision of other services to become a ‘one stop shop’ for 

all of their leisure and cultural needs. 

• ensure that we are an effective part of ‘The Big Society’, 

playing an important role in opportunities created through the 

Localism Bill and the local commissioning of services 

• be part of the national health agenda as part of the 

Government’s Responsibility Deal through our membership 

of various bodies 

• support our local partners in their responsibilities for the 

new health agenda in areas such as Exercise referral and 

obesity (particularly child obesity) – providing measured and 

meaningful outcomes 

• continue to deliver greater efficiency & effectiveness through 

our processes and systems to improve delivery of services 

and increase opportunities and income. 

• seek to develop and engage with all members of our team, 

valuing them as the greatest asset within the company, and 

striving to be an employer of choice. 

• continue to listen to our customers to understand their needs 

and identify how best we can meet and exceed those needs 

in safe, well maintained facilities. 

• continue to listen to our clients to develop our partnerships 

and help continue to deliver their community strategies and 

health and social agendas, working closely with health bodies 

and community groups. 

• continue to deliver high quality operations and services, 

and strive to deliver continuous improvement through 

the development of the Quality Management System and 

increasing our Quest scores. 

• continue to be an environmentally responsible company in all 

of our operations. 

• seek to develop new income generating opportunities 

through accessing funding, sponsorship, advertising, and the 

development of new services. 

• take advantage of the opportunities offered by the London 

2012 Olympics through our membership of the Herts is 

Ready for Winners Partnership, helping more people to 

become active more often. 

For further information please see SLL’s ‘Corporate 

Strategy’ document ‘ which details SLL’s 3-year 

strategy for the period 2011-2014. 



Stevenage Leisure Limited 

Head Office: 

Stevenage Arts & Leisure Centre 

Lytton Way, Stevenage, Herts SG1 1LZ 

Telephone: 01438 242 080 

24 hour Customer Information Line 0300 012 0300 


Registered in England Number 3446357

Annual Report - Stevenage Leisure

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?