a study of the range and scale of the industry which illustarates its current social and economical importance.

Stacey Morris AO2 Leisure Studies

A study of the range and scale of the industry which illustrates its current social and economical importance.

Consumer spending in the UK on leisure products and services.

The lifestyles of UK residents have undergone some substantial changes over the past few decades. Among the most notable changes are those that have taken place in the patterns of leisure activity for a large proportion of the population.

In this report I will cover a review and an analyses current demand for those products and services that serve the leisure activities market, including audio-visual and computer equipment, sports equipment and games, as well as cultural and recreational services provided by cinemas, theatres, libraries and museums.

The bar chart blow shows the percentage of consumer spending. As we can see the goods/.products have decreased since 1990 and the amount of services have increased.

Over the past 25 years, increases in disposable income and consumer expenditure have brought about steady growth in leisure markets. This growth in demand has been sustained by the continued development of products that have relied for their success on technical developments such as CDs, videos, DVDs, the Internet and digital radio and television. Changes in leisure lifestyles have also been supported by the development of concepts such as branded restaurants, multiplex cinemas and fitness centres that have relied less upon technical progress and more on innovation and organisational and marketing expertise.

Demographic changes have also influenced the balance of demand for different leisure products. On the basis of exclusive research commissioned from BMRB Access, Key Note has established the extent to which patterns of leisure activity vary across the different segments of the UK population. Of particular note are the changes that have taken place in the age structure of the population and in household composition, with the population becoming older and household size becoming smaller, in part a consequence of a rising divorce rate.

Other social changes that have taken place over the past 25 years include the 'feminisation of leisure' resulting from an increase in women's disposable income, and a consequent opening up of new markets for female special interest activities (e.g. health and fitness). Traditional male preserves such as the pub are being rebranded to appeal to women customers and target women drinkers.

Patterns of work have also been changing significantly, leading to increased pressure on time and encouraging a greater variety of leisure activities. So-called 'third place' locations, away from both home and the workplace, have become a particular focus for social interaction and leisure consumption.

Over the past 5 years, consumer spending on leisure activities has been increasing at a slightly faster rate than consumer spending in total. The largest sector of the market is the restaurants and cafés sector, while the fastest-growing sector has been the 'other major durables' sector (including the purchase of caravans, camper vans, musical instruments and sports equipment). The 'other recreational goods, gardens and pets' sector was the second-fastest growing sector, while the most mature and slowest-growing sector has been the 'newspapers, books and stationery' market.

The bar chart blow shows the percentage of growth in volume of UK consumer spending by category 1991-1999

Despite the presence of large operators in some sectors, including parts of the media, overall, the leisure activities market zis highly fragmented and characterised by strong competition.

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The bar chart blow shows the percentage of growth in volume of UK consumer spending by category 1991-1999

Despite the presence of large operators in some sectors, including parts of the media, overall, the leisure activities market zis highly fragmented and characterised by strong competition.

There is a large degree of variation between sectors in the level of advertising, attributable to differences in both the types of product and the characteristics of the market. Some products, such as videos and CDs, are standardised, hence, they can be effectively advertised through national campaigns targeting national markets, whereas others, such as most restaurant services, largely still provide a local service where low budget local advertising via press or radio rather than on national television may be called for.

A consideration of consumer behaviour reveals the most popular leisure activity in the UK to be watching television, with nearly 100% of UK households owning or renting a television set. Listening to the radio also remains popular as a leisure pastime, although listening takes place in other locations as well as in the home. Other items of leisure equipment include CD players, present in over 80% of UK households. On average, the time spent on leisure activities (defined as enjoying entertainment and culture, sports and outdoor activities, television and video) totalled 3.05 hours a day for men and 2.53 hours for women.

A review of the international leisure market shows that in the developed world, the recreation, entertainment, education and culture sector has significantly increased its share of total consumer spending over the past 25 years. It also shows that many leisure market trends are found across the whole of the Europe, whereas others are peculiar to specific countries.

In general, over the next few years, technologically driven innovation is likely to continue to have an impact on the leisure activities market. The business environment is also expected to remain favourable to the continued growth of the UK leisure activities market, whatever the political persuasion of the government, and given that the UK economy is likely to avoid serious recession.

With consumers continuing to place leisure activities high on their list of spending preferences, once more basic needs for food, shelter and personal

mobility have been satisfied, the sector should be able to ride out a modest slackening in the rate of growth in the economy.

The forecasts presented in this report are subject to some uncertainty at the time of writing this report (May 2003), particularly in the light of the war with Iraq, with its largely unpredictable consequences in terms of terrorist activity, oil price changes and impact on the level of economic activity in the UK.

Number of people employed in the industry in the UK and the types of jobs.

Employment opportunities range from jobs for people leaving school with GCSE’S, vocational ‘A’ levels or even no qualifications at all, to careers for degree graduates. The vast range of jobs reflects the breadth and diversity of the key industry components. This section cannot provide an exhaustive list of all types of employment opportunity within each of these components.

The leisure industry is often described as a ‘people industry’. This means that that in most jobs in the leisure industry employees will have a great deal of contact with other people, often the customers. So they will need an ablility to enjoy meeting and realiting to wide range of people. Similarly, good with communication skills, both written and oral are important.

To give some idea of the opportunities available, I have listed a section of jobs from each component of the leisure and recreation industry. It is important to rember that some jobs such as facility management, sales and marketing will be available across all sectors, while others are more specific to that particular industry component.

Example of jobs within industry components

Arts and entertainment

Performers / Presenters/ concert hall manager/ assistant manager/ box office manager/ assistant museums officer/ warden/ assistants/ visitor service assistant/ education officer/ bar maid or man/ publican

Sports and physical recreation

Health and fitness instructor/ outdoor pursuits/ education instructor/ physical education teacher/ professional sports person/ sports administrator/ sports centre manager/ leisure facility manager/ leisure facility assistant/ sports development officer/ sports medicine/sports coach/ swimming pool attendant/ lifeguard/ sales assistant/ sports retail.

Catering

Head chef/ Sous chef/ commis chef/ waiter/ waitress/ restrant manager / pub manager/ fast food floor manager/ barman or barmaid/ conference and banqueting manager or assistant.

Heritage attraction

Education officer/ facility manager/ assistant manager/ customer service manager/ guide/ marketing/ pr manager/ conserver/ archaeologist.

Countryside recreation

Gardener/ grounds person/ countryside warden/ ranger /park ranger/ assistant/ conservation/ outdoor pursuits instructor/ leader gamekeeper / countryside recreation officer/ manager/ education officer.

Home-based leisure

Sales assistant (e.g. Music shop hi fi supplier)/ shop manager/ assistant/ food beverage sales (takeaways)

Importance to the country and host town or city of holding national and international events.

Every two years, the International Olympic Committee convenes to select the next host city for a Summer or Winter Olympic Games, and these decisions are preceded by marketing efforts by candidate cities anxious to land the Games.

The evaluation of the “Olympic Project” is unique in the number of challenges it poses for the practitioner of CBA. One interesting problem is the complexity and interdependence of the various activities required.

Hosting the Olympics is not merely a public project, it is many public projects. Venues must be built. Infrastructure must be improved. Housing must be provided. Projects which might have happened anyway are redesigned or rescheduled in order to accommodate the Games.

All of these capital investments have benefits besides that of enabling the city to host the Games. It may certainly lead to an increase in

tourist visits and tourist expenditure.

The economic impact of hosting the Games is its effects on earnings and employment.

Participation treads in the most popular activates in the uk and Europe.

Detailed national data concerning the levels of different types of recreation is scarce. The General Household Survey, Living in Britain (1998), produced by the Office of National Statistics, does provide some useful data on recreational activities, including the following:

informal activities, such as walking or cycling, are the most popular pursuits
walking is the most popular activity with an estimated 68.2% of the population undertaking at least one leisure walk of 2 miles or more per year
cycling is the second most popular activity with an estimated 21.4% of the population undertaking this activity
watersport activities are also popular. It is estimated that almost 1 million people take part in sailing and motorboating activities each year

For water-based recreation, the only detailed national survey was undertaken by Leisure Consultants in 1989. As this survey was carried out at the height of the leisure boom in the late eighties and is nearly ten years old, it has been used only sparingly in this report. More up-to-date activity-specific information is used wherever throughout this report.

Seasonal trends

The seasonal variations of different activities can have implications for nature conservation. For example, management schemes may only be required for part of the year or not at all if the activity does not coincide with a site’s most sensitive periods.

The main seasons for activities are:

for the majority of outdoor activities the peak season is July to September
shooting activities are linked to legal constraints and generally occur in October to December
walking remains popular throughout the year but also peaks in July to September.

Trends in Participation

According to the House of Commons Environment Committee Report on Leisure Impacts (1995), there is no evidence to suggest that participation in any of the recreational activities which take place in coastal areas is growing significantly or has grown significantly over the last five years. This tends to be confirmed by other available data on leisure participation.

How participating in leisure activities can contribute to both the individuals health and well being and the nations health and well being.

Research is increasingly identifying leisure activities that contribute to improve health and well being. Findings in leisure research illustrate that enhances health by serving as a buffer to the stressful events of ones life. Studies also constantly demonstrate who regularly participate in leisure activities that match their interests and personality have an increased sense of well being.

The benefits of engaging in a preferred leisure activity for a person’s wellbeing are considerable. Though leisure can temporarily escape from the pressure of time and be burden of commitments and responsibility. Leisure can be an asset in dealing with life’s demands and assessing a person to develop a more balanced life. The physiological benefits of leisure are also numerous and translate into the potential to reduce healthcare costs.

Two important theoretical constructs of leisure that provide health benefits are those of flow and serious leisure. Csikszentmihalyi developed the concept of flow after researching the way people engaged in their favourite activities be they work or leisure. This research is important because it demonstrates that leisure is not simply the opposite of work. People engage in flow are tottaly immersed in their choice activity.

To expertise a complete sense of flow, one has to let go of the desire to the master time and instead master the experience. Flow experiences are intrinsically motivated. People engage in these experiences for the love and pleasure that participating in occupation can provide, and the subsequently enhances the health and wellbeing.

Local, national and Europe government strategies that affect participation in leisure activities.

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