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The latest annual National Operational Management Benchmarking Report for Aquatic and Recreation Centres from the CERM Performance Indicators research team at the University of South Australia has shown an increase in expense recovery across most centre groups, suggesting stronger performance and efficiencies from the previous financial year.

With the 2024 Benchmarking Report featuring an increase in participating centres (from a total sample size of 219 to 261), allowing for more reliable data and findings, a highlight was the change in expense recovery from the 2023 report to the 2024.

Across all centre groups, the report found that there was an increase in expense recovery, except for dry centres over 2000 square metres and indoor only pool centres (both staying at 99% and 86%, respectively), suggesting stronger performance and efficiencies from the previous financial year.

Dry centres below 2000 square metre had the biggest increase (an increase of 39 percentage points from 2023) and the largest expense recovery amongst all the centre groups (121% for 2024); this was also the only group to report a positive expensive recovery.

Meanwhile, outdoor only pool facilities and outdoor/indoor pool facilities were found to have 56% and 86% expense recoveries, respectively, both an increase from 2023.

A brief overview of some of the newly explored metrics showed internal transfers did not impact many of the dry centres or outdoor only pool centres. As for outdoor/indoor pool centres and indoor only pool centres, internal transfers made up 0.5-0.6% of their gross expenditures.

Another interesting finding was free entry visits among with aquatic centres. While outdoor only pool facilities reported 482 free entry visits, and indoor only pool facilities reports 739, outdoor/indoor pool facilities reported 4,235 free entry visits, despite the higher number of free visits, indoor/outdoor pool centres had 51 visits per square metres compared with 65 visits per square metre for indoor only pool centres.

Based on these findings, management may wish to consider their free visit policies in conjunction with their total capacity (such as decreasing free visits if they are not positively impacting return visits to the centre).

CERM PI’s highly anticipated annual report plays a key role in educating industry professionals and promoting continuous improvements in the operational practices of aquatic and recreation facilities.

Each year, the report covers many essential operational aspects, including facility space, visitation numbers and metrics, memberships, equipment, receipts and expenditure, utilities, human resources, wages, and fees. For the 2024 edition, new metrics were included in the question set, such as internal transfers, outdoor play area, number of pools, free entry visits, and dry acid and salt costs.

As leaders in the industry, CERM PI understands the critical role of data-driven decision-making in boosting the performance of aquatic and recreation centres across Australia. Developed in partnership with important stakeholders, the annual Benchmarking Report offers a detailed resource for centre management and local councils.

In summary, these findings, along with the bulletins as a whole, provide valuable insights into key performance indicators, efficiency benchmarks, and emerging trends that are shaping the industry. The report offers facility managers the tools they need to make well-informed decisions that improve the overall patron experience.

The operational management bulletin, along with customer service quality surveys, is regularly updated to ensure the most relevant data is captured on these critical elements of organisational success.

For more information email cermpi@unisa.edu.au

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