Total leisure time in the UK between 1971 –1996 has risen by 10%. Many workers now enjoy flexible work patterns or shift work.
Society, fashion and trends – in some areas of the country such as Birmingham, leisure centres have adapted to the needs of Muslim woman who want to swim. Women only swimming lessons and female lifeguards have been introduced. In many families both parents now work so families wish to spend leisure time together like-
- Family tickets at theme park and heritage centres
- Pubs with family rooms
- Holidays providing activities for the whole family
The 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s were influenced by youth culture that was dominated by music, fashion, trends like skateboarding which is a really big trend at the moment but in a few years it will be something else. During the 1980’s there was a tendency for young wealthy people to participate in expensive and risky sports. Like hangliding, ballooning and powerboat racing which was popular for the upper class.
Technology – technology has increased because of the following -
- New labour-saving devices such as microwave ovens and dishwashers have reduced the amount of time spent on household chores.
- Two major technological developments to have shaped peoples Leisure activities since the 1960s are the car and the television
- Advances in micro-electronics since the 1980s have led to whole range of consumer goods that have altered like: walkmans, Cd players, vcrs and DVD players, personal computers, camcorders, playstations
- Technology has provided opportunities for away-from-home leisure operators such as theme parks and museums to create exciting leisure experiences.
Demographic –life expectancy has risen due to improving levels of health care and the fact that people increasingly lead healthier, fitter lives, there are increasing numbers of retired people with large amounts of free time in which to peruse leisure activities, many organisations provide specific products and services to the grey market, the falling birth rate since the 1970s means that the proportion of children in the UK population has decreased
Scale of the Economy
Leisure and Recreation in the UK is a multi-billion pound industry, which has a major impact on the country’s economy in terms of consumer spending and employment.
This table shows consumer-spending forecast on selected goods and services
Consumer Spending
The leisure and recreation industry is a major source of income for the UK economy, with the value of consumer spending currently estimated at around £147 billion per year. One way of measuring the economic impact is to look at the average household expenditure for which there is long –term data. Since 1968 leisure services and goods have increased more than any other sector of household expenditure due mainly to the service sector. It is the service sector that has largely accounted for the growth in leisure. The growth of pay TV, visitor attractions, spectator sports and sports /health clubs has meant that there are more opportunities to spend money in the service sector resulting in substantial growth in household expenditure. The major part of growth is accounted for 44% of leisure service expenditure in 1998 compared with arts and admissions 2%, sports admissions and fee’s 6%, TV charges 9% and gambling 9%. These figures are, however, taken from the household expenditure survey, which seems to have some anomalies of classification.
Consumer spending volume forecast on selected leisure markets in millions
Tax Revenues- the leisure and recreation industry also contributes to the national economy via central and local government taxation, including corporation tax and value added tax. Leisure and recreation organisations contribute to local government finances through the payment of business rates .for example, in 1995 the sports council estimated that sport attracted £9.75 billion in consumer spending and contributed
Numbers employed nationally- it is estimated that the leisure and recreation industry and related industries employ around 1.7 million people in the UK. This accounts for approximately 12 percent of the total UK labour force. The industries are therefore regarded as major providers of employment opportunities; with around 50,000 new jobs created every year, because the leisure and related tourism industries are so diverse it is often difficult to obtain an accurate breakdown of numbers employed
Voluntary Work- the figures below do
Employment in leisure and tourism-related industries in Great Britain as of June 1998
Participation trends in popular leisure activities –
The table below shows participation rates for selected home based and away from home leisure activities since 1986, based on the percentage of UK adults who took part in the activity in the four weeks prior to the survey.
Cultural and social significance of leisure and recreation-
The UK leisure and recreation industry has a significant impact on our lives and on society in general. Local communities benefit from the provision of public, private and voluntary sector leisure and recreation facilities and services, ranging from libraries and museums to pubs and sports facilities .the traditional pub, Parish Hall or community centre is still the focal point of many communities in the UK. Cities such as London, Glasgow, Liverpool, Leeds and Birmingham and Hull have undertaken urban regeneration schemes, which have included investment in leisure and recreation facilities to improve the quality of life for both residents and visitors.
Arts and Entertainment - is a huge industry that includes many sectors, the main are
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Visual arts –painting, sculpture
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Performance arts – drama, dance, opera, circus
- Film and video
- Architecture
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Literature- writing, poetry
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Crafts-woodcarving, pottery
Arts- the arts are a precarious industry where losses are easily incurred due to high costs and a very fragmented market. Consequently, sponsorship and grant aid plays an important part. The public sector plays the most significant part in the funding for the arts .in 1999 the arts council gave out £188 million in grants, most of the grants were from the national lottery .the arts council is not the only national public sector organization to be involved in the arts, one important group is the British Film Institute [BFI] which is responsible for supporting film makers and the promotion British films industry. Entertainment- classified as entertainment are popular performing arts and spectacles .the voluntary sector is important here as nationwide participation in amateur dramatics and music as a popular pursuit.
Pubs and Clubs
Public houses and social clubs are in important part of British life .The local pub or social club is a central feature of many communities and provides valued leisure and recreational opportunities for customers. A wide variety of social clubs and associations have evolved to cater for the needs of all types of people, including working men’s club and institutes ex-armed
Sports and physical recreation
These activities can be grouped as follows -
- Informal recreation
- Competitive sport
- Outdoor activities
- Health and fitness
Each component has a different profile in the type of facilities and services it produces.
Informal physical recreation or exercise –this is the most popular activity throughout the country .the general house hold survey shows that in 1996 44 per cent of adults went for a walk over three miles at least once a month, while 88 per cent of children went swimming at least once a month. Nobody knows the hour’s children spend playing or adults spend in the garden or doing strenuous hobbies. We pursue these activities because they are cheap, readily available and don’t require a great deal of skill.
Competitive sport-most people immediately associate sport with the professional game. This means that they are spectators, and it is the spectator money from the gate and broadcasts that underpins professional sport. For many years professional sport was supported by personal investment by local businessman and it was not always very profitable. Facilities were often run down to the extent that some were dangerous for crowds. In the past decade the situation hays improved as professional sport has become far more profitable.
Heritage
The heritage industry concerns buildings and materials that have historical value. Thirty years ago these were largely stately homes, castles, ruins such as Stonehenge, battlefields or the musems.heritage was often about how the rich and the famous had lived their lives. Whether the attraction is a theme park or museum, the organisers will do their best to employ all the techniques of facility management to look after the customer and make the product interesting and exciting .in a theme park the excitement of the rides is a key feature. In a museum finding new ways to present information and items is essential and these include hands on experience, quizzes, actors and films.
Catering-
Sports centers- bars, cafés, meeting rooms
Cinemas-bars, snack and confectionary shops
Theme parks- restaurants, bars, accommodation
Swimming pools- vending machines, cafes
Sports staid-conference and reception facilities, restaurant
Social clubs- bars, restaurant, reception facilities
In 1998 there were around 44,500 restaurants, cafes and takeaway food shops in the UK, with a combined turnover of £13.5 billion .all sectors of the industry are involved in providing some form of catering services. However it is the private sector that dominates provision, both on local and national scale.
Catering facilities
The enormous number of catering facilities within the UK provides a wide range of food and beverages products and services .the list of catering establishments serving food and drink is seemingly endless, from expensive, a’ la carte restaurants to self-service cafeterias, burger bars, pizza houses and takeaways.
Countryside Recreation
The term countryside recreation covers a broad range of leisure and recreational activities, which can be classified as land-based, examples of this, would be
Water based
Air based
- Hang-gliding
- Hot air ballooning
Obviously many leisure activities in the countryside are sports or require particular physical effort. Countryside recreation is split up in to 3 sectors, public, private, voluntary,
Public sector - parks authority, local authority, countryside agency, forestry commission
Private sector – accommodation and catering providers, shops, pubs, farmers and attractions
Voluntary sector – recreation and conservation groups such as the ramblers association and the national trust
Countryside parks – there are 12 national parks in England and Wales and three in Scotland .the act describes them as areas of great natural beauty giving opportunity for open air recreation .the countryside provides significant opportunities for millions of people to enjoy a variety of leisure pastimes and activities including outings, drives, picnics, walks and visits to parks, monuments and historic properties. The countryside commission estimates that around 10million people visit the national parks each year in addition to the national parks there are other designated areas of the countryside which provide recreational opportunities like,
- Areas of outstanding beauty like Kent downs, North Pennines
- Heritage coasts, southwest coast, Norfolk coast
- National trails and long distance paths, Cleveland way, Thames Path
- World heritage sites, Hadrian’s wall, giant Causeway
- Country parks, Strathclyde Park, Motherwell, Crawford burn Park, Belfast
Urban parks, gardens and amenities – provision of land for common recreational use dates back to the middle ages. Many areas have urban parks; gardens and allotments in addition to the more recent development of amenities such as children’s play areas, walking trails and cycle ways. Some of the best-known parks include Hyde Park, Regents Park, and St James Park in London; and Sophia Gardens in Cardiff.
Outdoor Pursuits- there are over a thousands centres in the UK which specialize in providing outdoor adventure holidays .for example, Skern Lodge is an outdoor activities center near Biddeford, Devon .It provides visitors with a range of services, including accommodation, meals, transport and instruction in a wide range of outdoor activities such as canoeing, sailing, raft building, archery, climbing, horse riding and abseiling.
Home based leisure
Home based leisure is cheap and easy and relaxing .the equipment most popularly used, radios, CD’s, games, DIY, TV’s, computers, gardening materials and home fitness machines is normally provided by the private sector. The main exceptions are the library lending services (books, videos and audio) in the public sector and the talking book voluntary service for the visually impaired.
Scope of the Leisure and Recreation Industry
When looking at the scope of the leisure and recreation industry you are looking at 3 main aspects
- The activities themselves –e.g. playing a game of tennis, going to the cinema, listening to music
- The products associated with leisure – e.g. sports clothes, videos, music equipment
- Leisure services – e.g. leisure centres, restaurants or café, clubs, cinemas, stadia.
On the whole, home-based leisure is cheaper than leisure activities away from home because it is fewer dependants on products associated with leisure
A job in the leisure and recreation industry
Job-Assistant Leisure manager
Location- Birmingham
Salary- £14,500
Reference – SH30083
Job description
My job will be to help the running of a leisure center. Duties are likely to include -
- The operation of the center on a daily basis
- Arranging timetable for all of the facilities
- Recruiting and controlling the staff
- Organizing advertising
- Promote special events
- Reporting to the manager of any query’s
The job is based in Birmingham which is not that far from where I live so it’s a good distance for me to travel there every day .The company I will be working for is JFE Hospitality they have over 20years of experience in the recruitment and training industry, they undertake to handle all enquiries promptly and efficiently by ensuring that everyone who contacts them is spoken to within the hour during office hours and as soon as possible outside of those hours, to apply for the job there are numerous ways of doing so you can apply for the job online ,the application will look like this online -
I think that I have very good personnel skills; I am good at communicating with customers and helping them with their problems and enquiry’s.
I believe that I have good personal presentation and good interpersonal skills such as eye contact, clear voice, pretty smile, and I am very patient and I am considerate to others and I am a good time keeper, with this job I believe that I can develop my self. I Work very well with others, which makes me quite unique, I am enthusiastic and positive to others and I am very loyal and have a cheerful attitude. I am looking forward to working as part of a team, which is really good because I feel that I have a lot to offer to the company. Also I am very good in customer situations because I have lots of experience with customers.
