#CelebrateSport - A Year in Sport: Edinburgh Leisure's 2024 Journey

January: New Year, New Opportunities

The year began with a bang as Edinburgh Leisure launched a membership initiative with no joining fee, making it easier than ever for people to commit to their fitness journey. Fitness Development Manager Ally Strachan shared his predictions for upcoming fitness trends, inspiring members to embrace new ways of staying active.

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February: A Lifeguarding Legacy

In February, Edinburgh Leisure joined forces with The Prince's Trust to deliver the ‘Get Into Lifeguarding’ training course for young adults aged 16-30. This collaboration provided life-saving skills, career pathways, and confidence to a new generation of lifeguards.

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March: Recognition and Leadership

March marked the arrival of new CEO Jen Holland, whose leadership is steering Edinburgh Leisure into a promising future. Employees Martin, Andy, and Callum were honoured as nominees at the St Andrew's First Aid Scottish Awards, while Meadows Tennis clinched the prestigious Tennis Scotland Park Venue of the Year Award—a proud moment for the entire team.

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April: Campaigning for Fitness

A six-week membership campaign rolled out in April, promoting city-wide fitness membership access. The campaign underscored Edinburgh Leisure’s commitment to encouraging everyone in the community to live healthier, more active lives.

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May: Seriously Social and Super Saturdays

May was a milestone month with the inaugural Community Leisure UK’s Seriously Social Week, showcasing the work of charities, like ours, putting people above profit, connecting communities, and helping people to become healthier, happier and more creative, regardless of age or ability. Edinburgh Leisure also embraced UK Coaching Week by hosting a Coaches Open Day, where 90 coaches and staff came together to share knowledge and ideas. Capping off the month was the launch of the first-ever Fitness Class Festival – Super Saturday, where members experienced a day packed with diverse and exciting fitness classes.

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June: Community and Celebration

June saw the community come together for remarkable events. Over 430 children from swimming lessons across eight venues in Edinburgh experienced the excitement of a club-style Gala with a final Medallist Gala held for 151 children, at the Royal Commonwealth Pool showcasing their dedication and progress. Meanwhile, the Leith Victoria Swim Centre celebrated an impressive 125 years of service, and the Volunteer Celebration Event at Meadowbank Sports Centre honoured the incredible contributions of volunteers who make Edinburgh Leisure’s initiatives possible. From supporting elderly people who are at risk of having a fall through strength and balance exercises to helping local residents get fit for surgery, volunteers play a key role in helping us deliver our charity programmes that improve our community’s health, well-being and quality of life. 

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July: Sporting Glory

The summer heat brought sporting excitement as Edinburgh Leisure partnered with St James Quarter, Scotland’s official Team GB Fanzone for an Olympic Festival of Sport, creating a vibrant celebration of athleticism. Free holiday football programmes for 11-18-year-olds ensured no one missed out on the fun.

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August: Olympic Fever

August was a standout month as three Edinburgh Leisure team members represented diving at the Paris Olympics. Yona Knight-Wisdom, one of our dive coaches, represented Team Jamaica accompanied by Performance Dive Coach Jen Leeming who had coached Yona since 2018. Meanwhile, Dive Specialist Vicki Tomlinson represented GB as a diving judge. The community also rallied together for a watch party, cheering on Josh Kerr as he won a silver medal in the men’s 1500m at Paris 2024. Adding to the excitement, the summer holiday activity programme launched with a fun-filled "Go for Gold" challenge for kids. They had to collect stickers by taking part in activities city-wide, doing one activity per column and then entered into a draw to win an exciting prize.

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September: Achievements Galore

September was a month of accolades and initiatives. Edinburgh Leisure was a finalist for Scottish Water's Learn to Swim Provider of the Year and played an active role in National Fitness Day, promoting health and wellness. And 75 Kiltwalk participants walked 5, 11, or 21 miles in support of Edinburgh Leisure’s Ageing Well project and raised over £16,500. This project helps older adults in our communities stay active and connected in later life. Meanwhile, we launched our 2023-2024 Impact Report, the first since 2015, showcasing Edinburgh Leisure’s significant contribution to the community. Finally, the Play and Try Week encouraged kids aged 5 and under to take their first steps into sport and explore new adventures with swimming, gymnastics, dry diving, football and multi-sport classes. And having secured funding from the City of Edinburgh Council’s Edinburgh 900 funding to profile the City of Leisure through the lens of Edinburgh Leisure, we launched two pop-up exhibitions – ‘25 things you (probably) didn’t know about Edinburgh Leisure’ and ‘Great Lengths’, the history of Edinburgh Leisure’s Victorian Pools and RCP, at the Commie.

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October: Pioneering Innovations

October highlighted Edinburgh Leisure’s forward-thinking approach. We joined with the Scottish Government in celebrating Women and Girls in Sport Week (30 September - 6 October). Together, we inspired and supported every woman and girl across Scotland to get active. The launch of Evolve Meadowbank Hybrid Gym and Hyrox Training Club brought cutting-edge fitness experiences to members. During Challenge Poverty Week, the £10 Get Active Card was showcased, emphasising affordability and inclusion – it even made STV News at 6. Gracemount Leisure Centre earned the title of UK Active Centre of the Year for Scotland, a well-deserved recognition of excellence. And although the clocks went back, we ensured that the winter nights weren’t going to stop everyone’s game.  Our all-weather, tennis floodlit courts at Craiglockhart and Meadows ensured you could still play tennis even when it's dark outside.  

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November: Festive Spirit and New Beginnings

November was packed with celebrations and initiatives. The Winter Pass offered a fantastic fitness deal as the colder months set in, while the 18th annual Festive Gymnastics Display saw 800 participants delight audiences. The appointment of Adam Smallwood as Aquatics GB Performance Centre Lead Coach marked a new chapter in dive coaching, with the aim of producing world-class talent from a growing diving programme. Smallwood brings a wealth of experience, having nurtured and coached some of Great Britain’s top diving talent in Jack Laugher, Anthony Harding and Lois Toulson, all of whom returned from Paris 2024 with Olympic medals. The Royal Commonwealth is Scotland’s premier diving facility, and we are very proud of our programme from grassroots to performance level. And finally, The National Lottery, who raise £30 million each week for good cause across the UK, turned 30 in November and we celebrated with them. Their funding over the years has been a Game Changer for us, helping to fund the Craiglockhart Tennis Courts, the new boulders at EICA; the refurbishment of the Royal Commonwealth Pool and the new Meadowbank Sports Centre. 

This month also saw some changes in the Edinburgh Leisure Board as Scott Haldane our Chair for the previous four years stood down and we welcomed Malcolm Reid to the role of Chair and introduced two new Board Members Stephanie Anne Harris and Lorna Darrie.  

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December: Ending on a High Note

The year wrapped up with a series of achievements. The Edinburgh International Climbing Arena unveiled our brand-new bouldering facilities on 7 December, made possible thanks to £100,000 from Lottery Funding via sportscotland, funding which has allowed us to improve opportunities at all levels of climbing and make Ratho the only climbing centre in the UK with Olympic standard facilities for all 3 climbing disciplines. Meanwhile responding to our community needs, soft play sessions for children with Additional Support Needs (ASN) launched at the Royal Commonwealth Pool, marking a significant step towards inclusive recreational opportunities for all families in the capital. Finally, Meadowbank hosted the Scottish Open Snooker for the third time, closing the year with a showcase of world-class talent.

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A Year to Remember

From grassroots initiatives to international milestones, 2024 has been a testament to Edinburgh Leisure’s unwavering commitment to making sport accessible, inclusive, and enjoyable for all. As we look forward to 2025, we can’t wait to build on this momentum and continue transforming lives through sport and fitness.

Let’s keep moving, together! #CelebrateSport