KA Leisure’s chief executive officer Malcolm McPhail has told North Ayrshire councillors the organisation is the best performing leisure trust in Scotland and one of the top organisations of its kind in the UK.
KA Leisure is a registered charity which provides recreation and leisure facilities on Arran and across North Ayrshire.
Facilities are owned by North Ayrshire Council and leased to KA Leisure. The company is a not-for-profit organisation and any surpluses generated are reinvested in improving centres and services.
Mr McPhail said: “We are still in a growth stage of development of KA Leisure year-on-year to period nine. We are nearly £500,000 better off income-wise even though we were working through a difficult phase with the cost of living and energy crisis.
“The programme is excellent, the customer service is improving and we have declined the urge to put our prices up as we don’t think that is the right thing to do as we are still in the growth stage, despite the cost of living and energy crisis.
“We are through the Covid recovery phase and are the best performing financial leisure trust since Covid hit us, certainly in Scotland and potentially in the UK and this is highlighted within the membership development.
“We have gone from having 3,884 members to just over 9,500. We had more than 1.1 million touch points last year and that tells you the bandwidth of the organisation. We welcomed 1,126,555 visitors in 2023 - an increase of 10 per cent in comparison to 2022.
“This is a testament to the quality of our venues and dedicated staff teams. Despite the increased price of energy, and growing cost of supplies, services and staffing, we are committed to ensuring affordable access, with most of our prices remaining below the national average.”
Speaking after Mr McPhail’s report at a council meeting, council leader Marie Burns said she is impressed with the performance of KA Leisure.
She said: “We always get a really good report from KA Leisure. It’s always interesting and we share the importance of its well-being agenda. One of the things that brings it home is that KA Leisure always shows that personal touch by showing people whose lives have been affected.
“I congratulate you on your achievement since the pandemic. Those figures covering the increase in gym membership and the increase in income are excellent."
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