A major new report from Sport England and 4Global has strengthened calls for the Government to increase support for gyms, swimming pools and public leisure centres in the forthcoming Autumn Budget, warning that the sector is delivering billions in social value despite operating under severe financial pressure.
The annual Moving Communities report highlights the critical role these facilities play in improving national health and wellbeing, with public leisure centres contributing an estimated £3.63 billion in social value between April 2024 and March 2025. This figure reflects both the personal wellbeing benefits experienced by users and significant savings to public services, particularly the NHS.
According to the report, no other part of the sport, recreation and physical activity sector delivers impact on this scale. Participation in gym activities rose 13% year on year, with notable increases among women, under-16s, over-65s, and people living in England’s most deprived communities.
Women now make up 53% of all users, and gym activity among female participants increased 12%. Among under-16s, participation surged 21%, while visits by over-65s rose 19%. Engagement in the most deprived areas grew 7%, with these communities now accounting for 16% of national visits.
These trends point to a sector helping to narrow some of England’s most persistent health inequalities. For many families, leisure centres remain the only accessible and affordable spaces for exercise, community activities and supervised swimming.
But ukactive said today’s findings also expose a troubling reality: many of these vital facilities are operating with fragile finances. Rising energy bills, higher staffing costs and ageing buildings have left half of all facilities running at break-even, placing services at risk just as demand accelerates.
In a statement responding to the report, ukactive said the message to Government is “unmistakeable”: “If you really want to address issues of economic growth and take pressure off the NHS, the physical activity sector needs to be one of your primary partners.”
The organisation warned that any regressive measures in the upcoming Budget could severely damage the sector’s ability to grow and serve communities, worsening health inequalities at a time when the country urgently needs to improve population health.
The report also details the measurable health benefits generated by increased physical activity: £51.4 million in cost savings from reduced depression and £10.7 million from reductions in back pain alone.
Gym, pool and leisure operators say these savings far outweigh the Government support required to keep facilities open and affordable. They argue that investing in public leisure would act as a direct lever for economic growth, NHS relief and improved workforce productivity.
With the Budget now weeks away, industry leaders are calling on ministers to back the sector rather than burden it with further financial strain. As ukactive put it: “Now is the time to fully support gyms, swimming pools and leisure centres to deliver the economic prosperity and health improvements this nation urgently requires.”
