Freedom_feature 2 30/09/2014 10:50 Page 50
RETAIL, LEISURE AND HOSPITALITY : FREEDOM LEISURE
hen you’re running a
business on behalf of
another organisation, the
investment put in has to
achieve the maximum
benefit for your client and your own compa-
ny. At the same time, it has to take account
of specific responsibilities and the length of
the contract.
Freedom Leisure started in 2002 operating four
leisure centres for Wealden District Council. Its £2.5
million turnover then has grown to about £40 mil-
lion and it now operates thirty leisure centres, four-
teen pavilions, four paddling pools and other outlets
for seven key local authority partners and some
sports charities across Kent, Surrey and mainly
Sussex where it started.
W
SHARED RESPONSIBILITY
It’s now the third largest leisure trust in the country
and the largest in the Southeast. However, although
it is responsible for running, maintaining and to
some degree developing the various properties, it
doesn’t own any of them. “Some contracts have
repairing leases and some leave responsibility for
replacements with the local authority,” explains
Operations Director Matt Hunt. “Generally, the shell
of the building remains with the council and we take
responsibility for everything within it. We wouldn’t
replace roofs, but everything below that and within
the walls becomes our responsibility, so we replace
sports hall floors, for example, or equipment and
plant depending on the contract.”
Any new contracts the company takes on, he
states, result from a stringent tender process that
includes an assessment of what each centre needs:
“For most contracts, we make a significant invest-
ment at the front end on the basis that, the sooner
we do it, the sooner we get pay back within the
length of the contract. We commission a survey on
the building to make sure we’re aware of all the
issues. That tends to happen in the due diligence
stage, usually pre-contract, and we’ll tender against
other trusts and private operators, generally putting
forward our proposals for future investment.”
Examples of that include a recent contract in
Woking where there was a £1.8 million building
project and around £0.5 million of new equipment.
That provided improved fitness facilities, gymnasi-
ums, studios, a café and reception area, the local
authority subsequently investing in a 3G pitch
above a new car park at an additional cost.
“Sometimes we fund the amount up front but often
it’s funded by the local authority, which generally
IN GREAT
SHAPE
STARTING FROM OPERATING 4 LEISURE CENTRES
IN 2002, FREEDOM LEISURE IS NOW THE THIRD
LARGEST LEISURE TRUST IN THE COUNTRY
50
BUILDING DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION MAGAZINE
www.bdcmagazine.co.uk