Connecting you to the most impactful hires in your sector
We understand that finding and retaining top talent is challenging. This is why we take the time to connect you to the best candidates in the market, as opposed to those simply on the market.
The very best people your sector has to offer!
Our unmatched network gives you access to thousands of highly qualified leaders for both permanent and interim placements in Health & Fitness, Leisure, Spa & Wellness, and Hospitality.
We are truly ready to support your unique business needs.
We maintain close relationships with our talent base and can offer you unparalleled access to top decision-makers and exceptional candidates.
Executive SearchFinding the hidden talent ready to transform your business. We specialise in discreet and confidential executive search, ensuring your critical hires are handled with precision, professionalism, and care. We leverage our deep and industry-specific network of proven leaders to identify candidates who are not only qualified for the job but also align with your organisation’s strategic goals. | PermanentComprehensive recruitment solutions tailored to your organisation. We can support you in various ways, including project managing groupwide recruitment solutions on an exclusive and retained basis, delivering large-scale campaigns, and making one-off appointments. Our tailored approach blends strategy, experience, and access to exceptional candidates, to help you build teams that make an impact. |
Trusted by leading organisations
The Leisure People process
We combine proven methodology, market insight, and a hands-on approach to deliver talent that transforms your business.
Step 1: Understanding your needs
We begin by gaining a comprehensive understanding of your company’s culture, vision, and specific role requirements. This detailed consultation forms the cornerstone of our search, ensuring we identify candidates who align with your values and drive your business forward.
Step 2: Strategic market mapping
Our team conducts in-depth market mapping to pinpoint the most relevant sectors, verticals, companies, and job titles. This data-driven approach allows us to target the talent pools that matter most for your business.
Step 3: Sourcing
We combine multiple sourcing methods to deliver outstanding candidates, including:
Direct Headhunting of high-performing professionals.
Trusted Referrals from our established industry relationships.
A vast CRM database built over 25+ years of talent connections.
Social Media Reach to 20,000+ engaged followers across key platforms.
Step 4: Target outreach campaigns
We craft bespoke, compelling advertisements and strategically place them across the most effective platforms, including LinkedIn, niche industry publications, and targeted media. This is reinforced by direct engagement with top-tier candidates already within our network.
Step 5: Pre-screening and short-listing
We conduct thorough competency-based interviews and detailed pre-screening discussions to assess skills, experience, and cultural fit. Only the most aligned candidates make it to your shortlist, saving you time and ensuring exceptional quality.
Step 6: Interview coordination and offer management
We handle all interview logistics, communication, and feedback, ensuring a smooth experience for both you and the candidates. From scheduling to offer negotiations, we manage the process end-to-end.
Step 7: Post-placement follow-up
Our service doesn’t end with placement. We stay connected to both clients and candidates post-hire, ensuring smooth onboarding, satisfaction, and long-term success.
Don't Just take our world for it
Hear from our clients and candidates about their experiences working with us.
As both candidate and client Leisure People have been outstanding. Not only did they introduce me to Village, but they have been instrumental in supporting our Leisure Clubs throughout the UK. Their consistent ability to quicky identify and introduce top performing candidates adds huge value to our operations and is why they are a very valued longstanding partner to our business.
Chris Southall
David and his team at Leisure People lead the way in our industry, they are experts and truly know our business. We have worked with them for the best part of 20 years, their services levels, integrity, and professionalism are exceptional. They have consistently introduced great candidates when we need to recruit externally and that is why they are our exclusive recruitment partner for all our club level recruitment.
Spencer Briner
“I have worked with Mark over the last 10 years. Talk about industry professionals. Mark has a fantastic network of talent and is the go-to in the leisure industry. Countless assignments helping me identify talent as our business changed and adapted. Always available, always helpful and refreshingly honest. I cannot recommend Mark highly enough.”
“Working with Mark on our project of 5 senior roles has been such a positive experience both in terms of the relationship we have built and in delivering results. Mark was able to quickly understand our requirements and source a high calibre of talent, at pace. He willingly shared his experience of the market to help us position our roles appropriately and demonstrated that he has integrity in abundance. I highly recommend Mark and look forward to the next opportunity to work with him again.”
We have had the pleasure of working with Mark from Leisure People to fill several key aquatics roles within our organisation. Mark demonstrated a deep understanding of our industry, the specific skills required for aquatic positions, and the challenges of finding top-tier talent in this niche sector. The candidates presented were highly qualified and a great cultural fit for our team. Mark took the time to thoroughly understand our needs and delivered a seamless, professional, and efficient recruitment process.
“I have worked with Mark at Leisure People for many years, Leisure People have a broad depth of candidates from a wide spectrum of industries enabling us to match candidate skillsets to roles rather than simply industry experience. Mark has provided successful candidates for numerous senior positions in the business over the years and I’m sure will continue to do so going forward”
Following the successful insourcing of Southwark Council’s leisure centres, we worked with David to recruit to a permanent Head of Leisure. It is a key, specialist leisure role, so it was very important for us to find the right person. David was a pleasure to work with. He is highly professional and personable, as well as being an expert in the leisure field. David provided us with an exceptionally strong short-list, we were (excitingly) able to appoint a Head of Leisure.
Veronica has worked closely with Hilton over the last 12 months supporting our recruitment needs within the EMEA team. I have found Veronica to be a great support – she provides good calibre / relevant candidates, is very grounded in her approach and is a pleasure to work with. This has led to a successful partnership through some challenging assignments.
There isn't a more professional and supportive recruitment agency in the market. From both sides of the spectrum; the constant support and contact is of huge value, whilst understanding exactly what the client wants and matching that to the perfect candidate.
I changed career sectors from retail to leisure and Leisure People were pivotal to my success. Not only have they personally mentored me but have aligned my skills, capabilities and leadership to the right opportunities. A must for anyone taking their career to the next level.
In an industry that is awash with recruitment agencies, Leisure People stand out. They have been an excellent sounding board for some complex challenges and their honest and open approach is refreshing. They are extremely well connected and in touch with the leisure industry.