High Life Highland’s monthly income is now exceeding pre-pandemic levels, after its membership fees were hiked earlier this year.
A report to Highland Council’s education committee from the local authority’s leisure provider shows that it brought in around £570,000 from subscriptions in April 2023.
The figure has been climbing steadily since it dropped to around £180,000 in April 2021.
But although attendance at High Life Highland’s (HLH) centres also topped pre-2019 levels, the arms-length charity is still facing a number of significant pressures.
Rise in High Life Highland’s ‘most important’ income
In the report, chief executive Steve Walsh discusses the challenges.
“HLH is continuing to reduce costs,” he says. “It has implemented strict recruitment controls and new ways of working.
“It has reduced its office estate, having vacated both of its offices in Dingwall and Inverness.
“HLH continues to work with the council on property rationalisation.”
Things have returned to normal for leisure centres.
But the difficulties of the pandemic have been quickly followed by spiralling inflation and the cost of living crisis.
The growing income from subscriptions has been a much-needed boost after a testing few years.
Mr Walsh adds: “The leisure subscriptions are the most important customer income
source which HLH has.
“This income has been a key component of HLH, in partnership with Highland Council,
being able to set a balanced budget in 2023/24.”
What has changed?
HLH has made changes to meet a forecasted budget gap of nearly £5m in 2023-24.
Those adjustments have come from a combination of increasing income, efficiencies and reducing services.
A new pricing model started on April 1, raising the price of an individual membership from £22.80 to £24.85 a month.
Cash from Highland Council’s reserves will also address the shortfall.
The council itself is using £22m of its reserves to meet a £49m budget gap.
Its former head of finance Ed Foster described it in March as “not financially sustainable in the medium to long-term”.
One of the changes HLH has been forced to make is stopping its in-house outdoor activities.
Earlier this year, we reported this was due to stop at the end of April.
This means that families who pay a monthly fee for membership, and those who get activities at subsidised prices, have less choice.
HLH runs a School’s Out holiday programme of over 1,000 activities. These previously included outdoor activities.
Activities no longer available through HLH this summer include surfing in Lossiemouth and Thurso.
A spokeswoman for the north charity said last month that these activities are reliant on external funding.
So they could return in future programmes if applications are successful.
The report will be discussed by the education committee on June 1.
Conversation