LONG-TERM SUCCESS

Longwell Green Active Lifestyle Centre in Bristol, operated by Circardian Trust, was one of only four UK facilities to have achieved Outstanding Quest rating in 2024. Centre manager, Martyn Hinam says the accreditation demonstrates the Trust’s progress

SUCCESS LONG-TERM

Circadian Trust, a social enterprise which operates five Active Lifestyle Centres on behalf of South Gloucestershire Council, has been part of Sport England’s Quest continuous improvement programme for more than two decades. This year (2024), Longwell Green Active Lifestyle Centre, which joined the programme shortly after its opening in 2007, achieved an Outstanding rating in its most recent Quest assessment.

Assessing excellence

The accolade is no small feat. It was one out of only four leisure centres in England to receive this prestigious honour. The centre’s manager, Martyn Hinam, admits even he was surprised but very pleased by the news.

“The assessor explained that only 12% of centres achieve excellent for their mystery visit, and even fewer score excellent on both the mystery visit and the two-day assessment,” Hinam says. “It’s a pretty impressive achievement and a testament to the hard work of the entire team.”

To achieve Outstanding, a facility must not only score excellent in the Quest Plus two-day assessment, but also in the mystery visit assessment, and pass the compliance declaration (health and safety) module on the day of the assessment. However, for Hinam and his team, this recognition is not an endpoint but a marker on their ongoing journey of improvement.

“There are always areas we can improve upon. I’m a firm believer in continual improvement,” Hinam notes. “This result is definitely recognition, but my team and I are of the mindset we can always do better.”

Continuous improvement

Circadian Trust’s commitment to constant enhancement is clear. Recently, Longwell Green underwent a £750K gym refurbishment, which has already drawn positive feedback from customers.

However, as Hinam points out, the team also welcomes constructive criticism. “We’re grateful when people tell us where we haven’t done as well, because it means we can take action to improve. We try to step away from the emotion, look at what’s really happening, and focus on finding solutions,” he explains.

While each of Circadian’s five centres has its own management team, they all share insights from their Quest assessments, fostering collaboration and improvement across the board. “If you do Quest in isolation, you might get some good results, but when we share feedback and ideas between centres, we see a positive difference overall,” Hinam says.

This collective approach has led to impressive outcomes, and it’s one of the reasons Circadian has chosen to engage in the more comprehensive Quest Plus assessment. This two-day evaluation delves deeper into various aspects of the centres’ operations, providing a more detailed and thorough analysis of performance. “The two-day assessment gives us more depth. It helps us focus on improvements and hold ourselves accountable,” Hinam explains.

Proactive preparation

Over the years, Circadian Trust’s teams have also consistently improved in gathering evidence to support their progress. This proactive approach puts them in a stronger position, both in terms of centre performance and during Quest assessments. For example, the team monitors swimming lessons closely, tracking attrition rates, average yield and other metrics.

By the time the Quest assessment comes around, they already have the necessary information at their fingertips, ensuring they can effectively demonstrate the centre’s achievements and progress.

Quest Plus covers six compulsory modules, including Customer Journey, Operational Management, Managing the Team and Compliance Declaration. The latter focuses on legislative checks for running a leisure centre. Additionally, two further modules, Tackling Inequalities and Environmental Management, help centres create more inclusive and environmentally friendly operations.

On the second day of the assessment, centres can choose from various optional modules. One of these is Exercise Referral Standard, which aims to enhance the consistency of exercise referral schemes. Another is Accessible Facilities, which focuses on conducting a physical audit of the centre from the perspective of inclusivity. A compulsory module, Planning to Improve, helps centres establish clear, measurable business objectives to guide their future progress.

Learning from feedback

Hinam credits the Tackling Inequalities module with having a particularly significant impact on how he and his team approach their work. “Several years ago, one of the Quest assessors advised me to step back and consider our partners, our environment, and the local community,” Hinam recalls. “That advice has had one of the most positive impacts, especially at Kingswood Leisure Centre.”

Hinam took this guidance to heart and began reaching out to different people and organisations in the local area. One particularly successful initiative came about through collaboration with the local council and police.

The result was free weekly football sessions for children aged seven-to-16, held during off-peak times. The council provided the equipment, the police ran the sessions and Circadian offered the sports hall. “The sessions became really popular and we had a lot of positive feedback. It brought new people into the centre who might not have come otherwise,” Hinam explains.

This proactive approach to community engagement has shaped how Hinam operates today. He regularly works with local community leaders to gain insights into what’s happening in the area and identify where Circadian can make a positive impact.

Additionally, Hinam is a school governor at a specialist school for social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs and speech, language, and communication needs (SLCN). He’s also a Tai Chi instructor. “Being involved with the school not only allows me to share my experience but also raises awareness of what we offer at the centres.

“It’s given the school the opportunity to use Kingswood’s facilities for swimming lessons, and the positive impact on the local community is clear,” he says.

A positive partnership

Hinam is grateful for the support and advice Circadian has received over the years through its participation in Quest. He describes the Quest assessors as highly experienced professionals who provide practical recommendations in a supportive, non-judgmental way.

“The assessors are really clear – they’re not telling us we have to make certain changes, they’re offering suggestions. And those suggestions have been invaluable,” Hinam says.

He believes the Quest process has helped Circadian focus on continuous improvement, which in turn has had a positive effect on customer satisfaction and retention. “Improving standards leads to happier customers, which ultimately increases retention. It’s a win-win,” he claims.

Sharing the knowledge

With a career that spans David Lloyd, Holmes Place, Fitness First and Marriott, Hinam has plenty of experience to draw from. Now, he’s preparing to take on a new challenge – becoming a Quest assessor himself. “I love working for a leisure trust and giving back to the community. The work we do makes a real difference to people, and that’s why it’s so important to get it right,” he says.

Hinam says he is passionate about mentoring the next generation of managers, helping them develop the skills needed to carry on the work Circadian has started. “I train, coach and develop my managers so they can, in turn, train the next set of managers. That’s how we continue to improve – by passing on our knowledge and always looking for ways to do things better.”

As he prepares to take on Quest assessments across the country, Hinam is eager to share his expertise with other leisure centres. He says: “I’ve learned so much from my own Quest assessments, and I hope I can help others benefit from my experience. Ultimately, it’s about creating environments where people feel supported, engaged and part of a community – that’s when the real magic happens.”