Tag: Edinburgh Leisure

Soft Play’s back in action at Edinburgh Leisure

Soft play centres reopen today

Edinburgh Leisure’s three soft play centres, Clambers at the Royal Commonwealth Pool, Scrambles at the EICA and Tumbles at Portobello will finally be reopening their doors to customers today, Monday, 19 July 2021. 

Bookings for members went live at 9pm on Tuesday, 13 July and for non-members on Wednesday, 14 July.

Claire Rusack, Leisure Manager at the Royal Commonwealth Pool and Clambers said: “It’s been such a long time coming after an extended lock-down, which meant that we weren’t able to open as originally planned on 7th June, but we’re delighted that we can finally welcome back our youngest of customers and their parents and carers to let off some steam. 

“So, for anyone with little ones who need to burn off some energy, make sure you’re not disappointed by pre-booking in advance for any sessions you want to attend via the Edinburgh Leisure app or website.  And if you think you might be a regular customer, you might want to consider buying one of our soft-play memberships.”

Due to COVID-19 restrictions Edinburgh Leisure has had to adapt their offering with pre-booking done via the Edinburgh Leisure app or website only for all visits, either 8 days in advance for members or 7 days for non-members. No parties or special events can be booked at this stage.

All three venues will follow the same daily opening times from 9.30am-5pm, Monday to Sunday, with five pre-bookable slots of 60-minutes each to accommodate deep cleaning between each.   At the start of each month, the frames will be treated with a 30-day virus protection.

Adults will book a table for a maximum of six people, which will include adults, children, and babies.

Adults can remove face coverings while seated at the table but will be required to wear them at all other times, especially when moving around the space. A café service will be available throughout all sessions.  However, we are running a restricted menu at this time.

To adhere to Government guidelines, there will be no adults or staff allowed in the frames. 

However, adults can enter the frame to support a child with additional support needs. All adults entering the frame or walking around the soft play area must wear a face covering.  Space in baby areas where adults are present, will be limited, due to physical distancing.

Currently, frame capacity has been reduced to 40% of normal operating capacity, and ball pools and modular items have been removed.

The cost of a 60-minute session is: free for 0-6 months; £4.40 for 6 months – 2 years; and £6.80 for children 3 years and over.

And for regular soft-play attendees, there is an option to buy a membership, offering great value.

A monthly membership costs £16.70 for one child; £28.00 for two children; £33.80 for three children; and £39.50 for four children, which can be used at any of the three Edinburgh Leisure soft play centres across the city.

The Edinburgh Leisure app can be downloaded from the Google and App stores.

For more information, visit:  www.edinburghleisure.co.uk

Edinburgh Leisure’s Summer Pass: Everything you need for a sport filled summer

Don’t let the delay to the easing of Covid-19 restrictions stop you getting active this summer. If the Euros and Wimbledon are inspiring you to get moving, Edinburgh Leisure’s Summer Pass has everything you need for a sport filled summer and to stop you from being a couch-potato.

The ‘Summer Pass’, which goes on sale today, offers unlimited access to the city’s 12 state of the art gyms, 9 swimming pools, and 800+ fitness classes, and climbing at the EICA for £60 only.  The pass lasts six weeks from the date of purchase, with the last day a customer can purchase a pass being 31 August 2021.

James Stockton, Sales Manager at Edinburgh Leisure, said: “With so many people having staycations this year, why not use this opportunity to get fit at the same time. Our Summer Pass is less than £10 per week to stay active, without committing to a membership.

“Classes like Zumba or Sh’bam are brilliant fun and a great way to get you in the mood to party, while a workout at the gym will boost your energy for the night ahead.

“We’ve also got some quick hit X-press gym classes, which use high intensity interval training (HIIT) methods with explosive bursts of speed and activity to achieve a total workout in a short period of time, as 30 minutes. And our digital boditrax machine, available at the Royal Commonwealth Pool gym, which gives you a full-body composition analysis, could help you track your progress.”

Edinburgh Leisure’s Summer Pass is available to buy online on the Edinburgh Leisure website – www.edinburghleisure.co.uk

A passport to summer fun!

While COVID-19 travel restrictions mean that many of us will be having staycations this year, Edinburgh Leisure has their own passport for a summer of fun for your children and the family.

With the summer holidays approaching, the city’s biggest sports and leisure provider, Edinburgh Leisure, is bringing back the summer fun safely to their centres. Whether you are looking for a one-off activity for the family to enjoy, or some fast-track lessons to help make up for lost time, Edinburgh Leisure has it covered.

For gymnastics and aqua camps, children can be booked in for a day or for the whole week. Early drop-offs and late pick-ups are available.

A must for anyone who enjoys water, at the Aqua Camp, children from the age of 7 years can enjoy a variety of pool activities whilst working towards recognised Scottish Swimming and Royal Life Saving Society awards.

Little gymnasts from Primary 1+ will be entertained by Edinburgh Leisure’s coaches with activities including technique practice, stretching, and conditioning, vault and bar sessions into Tumbles’ foam pits, beam sessions, coaching the coaches, learning how to judge, and working on a routine.

And with climbing set to feature for the first time at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics, inspire them with the adventure and climbing camps at EICA Ratho. If your child is between 8-14 years old and new to climbing, the EICA’s week-long Adventure Camp brings together thrilling indoor and outdoor activities including climbing, Clip ‘n Climb, and abseiling.

For older children between 10-17 years, and more experienced climbers looking to get outdoors, Edinburgh Leisure’s Rock Camp combines bouldering and indoor sessions with outdoor ‘trad’ and sport climbing at some of Central Scotland’s most renowned crags.

And for children looking for some sports coaching lessons, there is lots of choice across the city whether your child wants to try something new, or just enjoy more of their favourite classes. Coaching sessions are available in tennis, swimming, gymnastics, diving, trampoline, climbing and dance.

And new for this year, is Swim Diving and Fun and Deep-Water Swimming and Fun sessions.

In Swim Diving and Fun, swimmers will learn how to shallow dive for swimming starts, this includes push and glide skills, handstands, surface dives and more. In Deep Water Swimming and Fun, the coaches cover the fun things everyone loves to do in deep water and how to keep safe near water. Being underwater is a lot of fun and there will be games and activities to help swimmers improve their underwater skills.

Also in the pool, there will be some Summer Diving session on the diving boards at the Commie Pool or for 9–14-year-olds, they can book into the pool with their friends for Edinburgh Leisure’s Junior Swim sessions.

And teens can also stay active in the holidays with the NRG Zone Gym Camps for S1 – 15-year-olds. With full access to Edinburgh Leisure’s well-equipped gyms, Edinburgh Leisure’s trained instructors will be on-hand to coach correct technique and use of equipment.

Gym access at any time accreditation is granted after completion of Edinburgh Leisure’s 5-day camp. Keep an eye on Edinburgh Leisure’s website for more information including how to book. It’s free to junior members but costs £21 for non-members.

And if you are looking for family activities, Edinburgh Leisure has lots of choices for the family to enjoy together and to burn off surplus energy.

The very first in Scotland, Edinburgh Leisure’s AquaDash and new AquaDash Extreme at the Royal Commonwealth Pool is a fantastic inflatable playground on water. Fun-seekers will slide, climb, and bounce their way through the thrilling obstacles, beating each one and racing friends and family.

Or take the experience to new heights with AquaDash Extreme, with its awesome addition of double slides from the 3m or 5m dive platforms. Spaces are popular, so make sure you book well in advance. Booking goes live 28 days before for each available session so ensure you check Edinburgh Leisure’s website regularly.

And Clip ‘n Climb at the Edinburgh International Climbing Arena will have the family reaching new heights with 15 climbing elements providing a range of features and levels suitable for children and adults. And it is suitable for beginners.

There’s also a Family Climb Taster session at the EICA. Even if you’ve never climbed before, this 90-minute taster session is for you. Children must be 4 years+ with at least 1 adult 18 years+ in the group for up to 3 children, or 2 adults 18 year+ in the group for up to 4 children. Maximum of 4 children per session.

To find out more about the activities and book online, visit:

Holiday Club – Edinburgh Leisure

Ageing Well and Keeping Active

The award-winning project, Ageing Well, run by Edinburgh Leisure in partnership with NHS Lothian, will be starting two new activities in July, to support people to become, and remain active in later life.

Starting on Thursday, 8th July, there will be a regular Walk around Saughton Walled Garden with a volunteer walk leader. 

The walk is suitable for people who have not walked much before, and are looking to be more active, or are returning from injury or illness. The walk will take up to 30 minutes on flat ground or gentle slopes with firm surfaces and generally no steps.

Register your interest with active@edinburghleisure.co.uk. Participants should meet at the Garden Bistro, at 10.50am for an 11am start.  A contribution of £1 is welcomed towards the activity.

There will also be an 11 weeks’ Cycle Skills Course, starting on Monday, 12th July. This will meet at Saughton Sports Centre initially, with a further 4 weeks on the cycle paths leaving from Ainslie Park Leisure Centre and a further 4 weeks leaving from Meggetland. Good quality bikes and helmets are supplied to trainees so there is no need to own your own.

This course is suitable for those who wish to take up cycling again after a lengthy absence but lack confidence. The course will give participants an opportunity to improve confidence on a bike; increase bike-handling skills; put in to practice the skills they are learning; and the introduction to cycle paths, on the last two weeks of the course.

The course is very relaxed, sociable, and fun and is based on the Cycling Scotland Bikeability material adapted for adults. A contribution of £2 per week is asked from trainees to help towards the running costs of the programme.

Pre-booking a slot on the course is essential – active@edinburghleisure.co.uk

Ageing Well also has a walking programme, which has eight health walks across the city on different days, aimed at different fitness levels.

Further information about the different walks can be found at: 

https://www.edinburghleisure.co.uk/ageing-well-walks

Since their activities reopened after COVID-19 restrictions lifted again at the beginning of April, they have been supporting 120 older adults to be active again. The emphasis is on meeting new people and making physical activity accessible and enjoyable. All activities are either led by or supported by fully trained volunteers, who are all older adults themselves.

For further information, to register your interest and/or to book a slot, contact the Active Communities team on active@edinburghleisure.co.uk

Thrill seekers: Slide this way!

Edinburgh Leisure launch AquaDash Extreme

Calling all thrill seekers, Edinburgh Leisure is launching a new extreme element to AquaDash, its inflatable playground on water at the Royal Commonwealth Pool when it reopens on Saturday, 26 June 2021.  Bookings are now live.

Two inflatable slides will be attached to the 3m and 5m diving platforms and will be available during some of the Saturday AquaDash sessions.

Two different types of sessions will be offered: AquaDash (normal offering) and AquaDash Extreme (which includes the slides). Customers who attend AquaDash Extreme will be able to move between the AquaDash assault course and the slides during their 45-minute sessions.

Launched by Edinburgh Leisure in February 2018, it was the very first in Scotland. Suitable for all fitness levels, AquaDash is the ideal activity for the full family to enjoy. Participants slide, climb, and bounce their way through thrilling challenges, beating each one and racing friends and family to victory. There is a bonkers bridge, slippery slide, wacky wiggle discs and adventurous action tower to name a few.

Customers aged 6 years can access AquaDash. There is no specific swim requirement although the activity is more enjoyable if participants have water confidence and some swimming ability.

Claire Rusack, Leisure Manager at Edinburgh Leisure said: “After the year everyone has had, AquaDash Extreme is sure to inject some excitement into life.  AquaDash is fun but without the sun.

“Whilst we might not be blessed with wonderful continental weather, AquaDash promises all the excitement of an amusement water park but indoors in a safe environment that can be enjoyed by all family.  And it promises a good workout at the same time.”

To ensure everyone remains safe, there have been some changes to the way AquaDash operates:

  • The maximum number has been reduced from 45 to 25 to ensure appropriate distancing between adults.
  • The safety briefing has been reviewed to include rules of play to ensure appropriate distancing is adhered to
  • There will be a break of 15 minutes between sessions to enable sanitising of the course.
    • Session times have been reduced from 50 minutes to 45 minutes to enable these changes.

AquaDash/AquaDash Extreme* will be available on the following days:

Saturday

13.45, 14.45*, 15.45*, 16.45*, 17.45*.

Sunday

08.45, 09.45, 10.45, 11.45, 12.45.

The basic AquaDash sessions will cost £10.00 for an adult and £8.50 for a junior. AquaDash Extreme will cost £12.00 for adults and £10.50 for juniors and last 45-minutes. 

All sessions will need to be pre-booked and paid online.

Customers will be able to book 28 days in advance (rolling booking date).

Book on the Edinburgh Leisure app or website:

 https://www.edinburghleisure.co.uk/aquadash

DO YOU DARE TO DO THE DASH?

Spring into summer with an offer from Edinburgh Leisure

With Edinburgh Leisure’s gyms, pools, fitness classes and climbing arena open, they are encouraging you to spring into summer with an enticing no-joining-fee offer. At a time when health has never been so important, their latest offer could be just what you need to kick start your fitness regime.

The no-joining-fee offer is available on new memberships and can be bought online on the Edinburgh Leisure website from Tuesday, 1 June to Wednesday, 30 June and is applicable to all fitness, swim, gym, class and climb memberships.

The Edinburgh Leisure experience may be different from before Covid-19 with new customers needing to join online rather than in venue and pre-booking required for all activities, but customers will still receive the warm, Edinburgh Leisure welcome.

Edinburgh Leisure continues to operate in a cashless environment, accepting contactless payments; and safety remains important with enhanced cleaning taking place and additional sanitisation stations available throughout the venue for use before and after each visit; and timetabled activities with staggered start times to reduce congestion.

With 50+ venues across the city, including a world class climbing centre, 6 golf courses, 9 swimming pools, 10 state of the art gyms and 800+ fitness classes per week across the various centres, Edinburgh Leisure is the biggest club in town, with something for everyone to enjoy moving and getting fitter.

For further information visit www.edinburghleisure.co.uk

Royal tennis at Craiglockhart!

Duke and Duchess of Cambridge experience LTA Youth – the LTA’s new and innovative junior tennis programme

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were today given a first-hand introduction to LTA Youth, the new LTA programme that will help more children enjoy the benefits of playing and staying in tennis – whatever their age, gender, ability, disability or background.

The Duke and Duchess were visiting Edinburgh Leisure’s Craiglockhart Tennis Centre to learn more about the new programme and take part in a series of LTA Youth drills with local children.

After an explanation of the principles behind the programme by Scott Lloyd (Chief Executive, LTA) and Olly Scadgell (Participation Director, LTA) the Duke and Duchess went on court to join children from Canal View Primary School, Edinburgh, and try their hand at three fun games that help teach progressive skills for tennis as well as for other sports.

Firstly they did a hopscotch warm up, before picking up racket and ball to play floor tennis against a partner. The Royal couple competed with the children to see who could keep rallies going the longest.

Finally Their Royal Highnesses each captained a team of children in an epic game of ‘team cones’ with each child playing a mini match against the others to secure a point for their team.

Graham Watson (Chair, Tennis Scotland) and Blane Dodds (Chief Executive, Tennis Scotland) explained about the implementation of the programme in Scotland and the opportunity for parents to book courses locally. 

Before leaving all the children present were given LTA Youth rackets to inspire them on their journey to becoming young tennis players. 

Scott Lloyd, LTA Chief Executive, said: “It was great to be able to show Their Royal Highnesses our new junior tennis programme first hand.

“LTA Youth is designed to be fun, inclusive and competitive and help children enjoy tennis whatever their age. Courses across the country can be booked via the LTA website.”

LTA Youth courses are available to book now across Britain at:

https://www.lta.org.uk/play-compete/lta-youth/youth-programme/

Edinburgh Leisure joins forces with NappiRunz to support families to get active

Edinburgh Leisure is joining forces with city-based charity, NappiRunz, to support families struggling with nappy poverty by offering free swim nappies at four of their swimming venues.

The swim nappies will be available at Edinburgh Leisure’s Gracemount Leisure Centre, Drumbrae Leisure Centre, Ainslie Park Leisure Centre and the Royal Commonwealth Pool. Customers will be able to request a single nappy per child, per visit, no questions asked.

Ed Bethune, Duty Manager at Gracemount Leisure Centre said: “We’re delighted to be partnering with Nappirunz in providing free swim nappies to families who might have found the cost of nappies prohibitive to come swimming and get active.

“All a customer needs to do to receive a swim nappy is to ask one of Welcome Hosts at the reception desk in each centre. No questions will be asked by us, other than to check what size the customer needs.”

The scheme will start on Wednesday, 19 May and will be dependent on stock levels. As Nappirunz receive more stock, they will deliver more to the four sites.

Set up in 2015 by Toyin Ware, NappiRunz provides support to families by collecting unused nappies from the local community and donating them to other charities and organisations that support families in need.

Toyin Ware said: “Nappy poverty can have such a huge impact on not just the hygiene and wellbeing needs of the child but for the parent or caregiver too.

“It’s great that another charity, Edinburgh Leisure, can help in our cause by distributing the swim nappies, meaning families will have one less barrier to keeping active.” 

To find out more about donating any unused nappies of any type, visit: Nappy Donations Edinburgh | NappiRunz

Edinburgh Leisure is a charity on a mission to help people lead healthier, happier, more active lives.  They run over 50 sport and leisure venues and are committed to creating opportunities for everyone to get active and stay active.

Their Active Communities Programme harnesses the power of physical activity and sport to tackle inequalities and combat the effects of inactivity.

For more information:   www.edinburghleisure.co.uk

Edinburgh Leisure: Back Exercising Together

Edinburgh Leisure’s Chief Executive June Peebles has welcomed the First Minister’s latest announcement, which means the Edinburgh-based leisure operator can finally welcome customers again for indoor fitness classes, gym classes, adult coaching and adult outdoor contact sports from 17 May.

June Peebles said: “It’s been a long time coming but it’s another much welcomed step towards normality. I am so excited that we can finally restart our indoor fitness classes, gym classes, adult coaching and adult outdoor contact sports.

“It also means our dedicated fitness instructors can, at last, get back to doing what they love; helping people to move and have fun in a group setting.

“While we were permitted to reopen our pools and gyms for individual exercise on 26 April 2021, indoor group fitness classes were still not allowed. For customers who prefer the variety and sociability of a group fitness class, this enforced lock-down has been tough. 

“Like many businesses we have had to move with the times and adapted by offering online streamed classes and some outdoor classes at Drumbrae and Portobello, but it’s not quite the same.  Also, Scotland’s weather isn’t always the most conducive for outdoor classes.”

As in September 2020 when Edinburgh Leisure reopened their venues after the first lockdown, the Edinburgh Leisure experience is different from before, but customers will still receive the warm, Edinburgh Leisure welcome.

The main changes that customers will notice are:

  • All activities must be booked via the Edinburgh Leisure app or website.
    • Members can book classes three days in advance, while for non-members, it is two days.
  • Edinburgh Leisure continues to operate in a cashless environment, accepting contactless payments.
  • Safety guidance will be on display throughout the venues.
  • Enhanced cleaning will take place and there are additional sanitisation stations are available in the venues for use before and after each visit.
  • All activities are timetabled with staggered session start times to reduce congestion.
  • Customers must wear face coverings in communal areas, but not for their activities.
  • Class sizes are reduced.

Gyms and leisure centres were among the businesses to close their doors in a bid to control the coronavirus pandemic. After the initial lockdown in March 2020, Edinburgh Leisure started to reopen their venues on 14 September and could offer group indoor fitness and gym classes, gym and swim sessions. 

However, the group classes were forced to close again after only three weeks and five days on Friday, 9October, due to a spike in Covid-19 cases across Scotland. And when Edinburgh Leisure’s venues reopened again after almost a four months’ closure on 26 April 2021, only individual activities such as swim and gym sessions were permitted.

Nonetheless, since November 2020 and during the closure, Edinburgh Leisure’s Active Communities programme has continued to work with around 450 customers per week through a blend of online classes and one to one session and ‘wellbeing’ phone calls to keep more ‘vulnerable’ customers active and well at home, safely.

June Peebles, CEO of Edinburgh Leisure concluded: “Edinburgh Leisure is committed to ‘building back better’ to a sustainable Edinburgh Leisure and to continue making a positive impact to the citizens of Edinburgh’s health and wellbeing – as we have done for the last 23 years.

“Now that the roll-out of the vaccine programme is well underway and with the enhanced safety and cleansing measures we have in place, I hope that our customers will feel confident to return if they haven’t already done so.

“Never before has health and wellbeing been so important. And Edinburgh Leisure remains committed to supporting the people of Edinburgh to be active and enjoy good health.”

Youngsters return to pools with a splash in Edinburgh!

Young swimmers are celebrating their return to swimming lessons – and at the same time are showing how healthy activities can return post-lockdown – with the reopening of ten pools in Edinburgh.

Following months of closure caused by the pandemic, Edinburgh Leisure has been able to facilitate the return of 4,370 children to the national Learn to Swim Framework.

Edinburgh Leisure operates pools at Ainslie Park Leisure Centre, Drumbrae Leisure Centre, Gracemount Leisure Centre, Dalry Swim Centre, Glenogle Swim Centre, Leith Victoria Swim Centre, Portobello Swim Centre, The Royal Commonwealth Pool, Queensferry High School and Currie High School.

The Learn to Swim Framework, a partnership between Scottish Swimming and Scottish Water, is delivered by Leisure Trusts and aquatic providers enables children of all ages to become safe and confident swimmers.

Edinburgh Leisure has welcomed back 4,370 children and young people from babies through to Club level from 26 April 2021 – the first lessons in the area since pools had to close in December following an initial re-opening in September at the end of the first national lockdown.

Angela McCowan, Aquatics Development Manager at Edinburgh Leisure said: “We are delighted to be welcoming so many children and young people back to our pools across the city. Not only is it a great opportunity for them to get active again but they are learning critical life skills, which will keep them safe in and around water.”

New measures have been put in place, including social distancing, additional hygiene procedures, instructors teaching from poolside and children arriving to lessons ‘Beach Ready’ with their swimming costumes on under clothing.

Around 85% of the 39 Learn to Swim Framework providers are set to resume their programmes over the coming weeks and Edinburgh Leisure will open 10 pools for lessons.

The Learn to Swim partnership between Scottish Swimming and Scottish Water was extended for a fourth year in 2020 following its success in creating a 100,000-strong new generation of safe swimmers.

Euan Lowe, Scottish Swimming chief executive officer, said: “After a long period of various closures and restrictions, we’re thrilled to see children return to the water. It’s great to see their excitement and eagerness to get back into the water. We look forward to seeing lessons resume right across the country over the coming weeks.

“It is also encouraging to see the nation’s youngsters take a lead in showing that health and leisure activities can be resumed post-lockdown. We know from recent studies and advice from the World Health Organisation that the properties of chlorine make pool environments safe spaces during this pandemic to participate in sport and exercise.

“The Leisure Trusts and aquatic providers involved with Learn to Swim has shown what can be achieved when everyone works so closely and diligently together.”

Brian Lironi, Director of Corporate Affairs with Scottish Water, said: “It’s fantastic to be in a position now where we can restart the programme and enable more children to become strong and confident swimmers – especially in the lead up to summer.

“With our partnership with Scottish Swimming into its fourth year, we look forward to seeing thousands of youngsters continue to both start and enjoy their lessons.”

The Learn to Swim Framework is aimed at youngsters from birth to 11-years-old and provides consistently high-quality teaching which progresses through a series of lessons and levels over a number of years.

More information on the Learn to Swim Framework can be found on the dedicated website: www.learntoswim.scot