Sport England’s Quest scheme is assessing all 22 of North Yorkshire Council’s leisure facilities as they come under direct council control during a phased transition in a drive to unify and enhance service standards across the county’s leisure centres.
The move follows the formation of the new North Yorkshire Council unitary authority, which came into force on 1 April 2023, bringing together the former North Yorkshire County Council and seven district and borough councils.
Under the banner of Active North Yorkshire, the council is changing from six different leisure providers to a single, in-house model. Currently, North Yorkshire Council operates 16 leisure venues. By 2027, all 22 leisure facilities will be fully integrated in-house. Together the venues support around five million visits annually, serving a population of more than 1.15 million people.
Quest will be a central tool in this strategy. Nine venues have already undergone the process, with more to follow as they join the council’s portfolio.
Caroline Constantine, Managing Director of Quest says: “We are supporting the council in its drive to unify and enhance service standards across the county’s leisure centres as they come under direct council control. Managing such a wide mix of providers with different commercial models, standards and operational practices across such a vast area presented real challenges. The ultimate goal is to help Active North Yorkshire ensure that whether you visit a leisure centre in Harrogate or Northallerton, the quality of service and experience is consistently high.”
North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for leisure, Cllr Simon Myers, says: “Our new sport and active wellbeing service, Active North Yorkshire, was launched in September 2024 with the aim of creating first-class health and wellbeing hubs across the county that support our communities to be more active. Despite the challenges of scale and complexity, this approach means we can ensure residents benefit from high quality, consistent leisure services – wherever they live in the county.”
David Ashbridge, Head of Sport and Active Wellbeing (Operations) at Active North Yorkshire, adds: “Quest is a vital tool in turning our ambition into a reality. Having worked with Quest since its inception 25 years ago and seen first-hand how it helps embed robust quality systems, I am confident Quest will give us a structured way to assess performance, identify areas for improvement and share best practices across all sites.”
Quest reports from the first nine centres have already revealed significant variations in operational methods and performance, reflecting the legacy of different management models. The Quest Action Plans will now help Active North Yorkshire to address service gaps and replicate effective practices across all sites.
A public consultation was carried out prior to the leisure facilities coming in-house to understand what residents wanted from their local leisure provision. The feedback is also helping to shape Active North Yorkshire’s long-term vision and investment plans.
With thanks to Sport England via Big Fish PR
