The Conveners Podcast

In this episode of The Conveners Podcast, host Andy King is joined by Duncan Wood-Allum, Managing Director of SLC, to discuss his newly revised industry blueprint for the UK leisure, sport, and physical activity sector.Duncan shares personal reflections from the past year, including a health scare and his ongoing community mentoring work, before diving into critical sector updates. The conversation tackles the evolution from traditional leisure facilities to place-based active wellbeing hubs, pressing workforce challenges such as low pay and career pathways, and the systemic disconnect between strategic place partnerships and public leisure operations.They also explore the unrealised potential of health partnerships, data collection hurdles, and the vital role grassroots sports must play alongside active wellbeing initiatives. Finally, Duncan issues a direct call to action for industry professionals to collaborate on a practical roadmap for the next decade.Listen to the full episode to discover how the sector can drive meaningful change, and visit the SLC website to read the revised blueprint. Don't forget to follow and share the podcast!

Andy chats with 4Global Managing Director Jack Shakespeare about his career background, family life, and the evolution of Moving Communities, a data program powered by Sport England. They explore how modern data platforms, place-based networks, and integrated utility and participation tracking are helping leisure operators and public health decision-makers measure true social value and tackle local inequalities.

In this episode, host Andy speaks with Becky Cox, interim Chief Executive of Swim England, about her 25-year career in leisure and the evolving role of aquatics in public health. They dive into the "One Swim England Strategy," which aims to unite the aquatics community and broaden the NGB’s scope beyond competitive swimming to include place-based initiatives, school swimming accessibility, and open water safety. The conversation touches on operational friction between operators and swimming clubs, as well as the disparity in school swimming funding between Wales and England. Looking forward, Becky emphasizes the untapped potential of aquatics in health and wellbeing—particularly for individuals using weight management medications (GLP-1s) or seeking low-impact resistance exercise—and calls for greater integration between traditional fitness operations and aquatic programs.

In this episode, host Andy sits down with Jon Keating from GM Active and Graeme Hindes from LFX to reflect on the insights and success of their joint two-day conference on exercise referral and movement for health. The conversation explores why exercise should be viewed as a tool while long-term behavior change and community engagement serve as the true interventions. They highlight national takeaways regarding consistency, evaluation, and standards from initiatives across Scotland, Wales, Blackpool, and Greater Manchester's Prehab for Cancer program. Finally, the trio discusses the future of physical activity in healthcare, addressing workforce skill development, embedding leisure directly into NHS care pathways, utilizing AI for data synthesis, and launching a new joint virtual club to keep the cross-sector collaboration going.

This episode of The Conveners Podcast features Andrew Terry, co-founder of Link Golf, sharing the remarkable journey from taking over a struggling municipal golf course in Rochdale to building a growing portfolio of golf facilities across the UK.Andrew discusses how a focus on accessibility, community engagement, operational discipline, and targeted investment has helped revive golf courses that were at risk of decline or closure. The conversation explores the challenges facing both publicly owned and private members' golf clubs, the importance of creating welcoming environments for new players, and how innovative management approaches can protect and grow local sporting assets.A fascinating discussion for leisure operators, local authorities, sports organisations, and anyone interested in sustainable facility management, community sport, and the future of golf.