ukactive has named 4GLOBAL as its Strategic Data Partner in a new multi-year agreement aimed at improving benchmarking and market intelligence across the physical activity sector.
The partnership builds on three years of collaboration between ukactive and the data and intelligence specialist and will bring together information from public, private and independent operators.
4GLOBAL will provide benchmarking, analysis and evidence development, with the aim of addressing fragmented data and inconsistent benchmarking across the sector.
The partners say creating a more consistent evidence base will provide a clearer picture of market performance and help inform investment, strategy and policymaking.
The annual UK Health & Fitness Market Report will be one of the key pieces of work delivered through the partnership. The report brings together data on visits to health and fitness facilities across the UK to track the size and development of the sector.
Clemency Lion, director of research, policy and communications at ukactive, said: ‘High-quality data and insights are vital if we are to demonstrate the true value of the physical activity sector and support its sustained growth.
‘Having a multi-year partnership will enable us to better identify and respond to trends, giving ukactive members, partners and policymakers a clearer picture of how the sector is performing and the contribution it is making to society.
‘A consistent, robust evidence base will improve our engagement with government and make a stronger case for why further support is needed to unlock our sector’s full potential.’
Jack Shakespeare, managing director at 4GLOBAL, said the partnership would focus not simply on collecting more information, but on connecting data from across the sector and turning it into usable insight.
‘By combining ukactive’s reach and sector knowledge with 4GLOBAL’s data expertise and InsightOS infrastructure, we can build a much clearer picture of how the sector is performing, the value it creates and where the greatest opportunities for growth lie,’ he said.
‘Ultimately, this partnership is about giving the sector and its partners greater confidence in the evidence they use to make decisions – and helping the sector demonstrate its contribution with greater clarity and consistency.’
4GLOBAL’s InsightOS platform will be used to connect and analyse data, with the company drawing on information covering sports participants, gyms, fitness centres and other sports venues.
The partnership is intended to provide ukactive members and wider industry stakeholders with more consistent market intelligence as the sector seeks to demonstrate its economic, health and social impact.
