Scottish Household Survey 2024: Satisfaction with Local Health Services and Sport and Leisure Facilities

Satisfaction with Local Authority Sport and Leisure Facilities

46% of all adults said that they were very or fairly satisfied with local authority sport and leisure facilities. 16% of people were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied and 9% were very or fairly dissatisfied. 29% of respondents reported having no opinion on the question.

The proportion of adults who were very or fairly satisfied with local authority sport and leisure facilities increased from 43% in 2023 to 46% in 2024.

Figure 6: Satisfaction with the quality of sport and leisure facilities has increased since 2022, but remains lower than in 2017

Satisfaction with local authority sport and leisure facilities, Scotland, 2015 to 2024

Note that this question was not asked in 2021 and 2022.

Shetland Islands reported the highest percentage of adults who were very or fairly satisfied with local authority sport and leisure facilities at 82%, whereas Clackmannanshire reported the lowest percentage at 25%.

West Dunbartonshire showed the largest increase in very or fairly satisfied responses, with an increase of 21 percentage points from 31% 2023 to 52% in 2024. Renfrewshire showed the biggest decrease with satisfaction falling by 13 percentage points from 54% in 2023 to 41% in 2024.

Service Users

Adults who have used local authority sport and leisure facilities within the last 12 months are considered to be service users. 84% of service users said that they were very or fairly satisfied with the local authority sport and leisure facilities, 5% said they were neither satisfied or dissatisfied and 10% said they were very or fairly dissatisfied with them. 1% reported having no opinion on the question. Service users report a higher rate of satisfaction with their sport and leisure facilities than all adults.

For service users, there is little difference in satisfaction with local authority sport and leisure facilities by sex. The percentage of service users who were very or fairly satisfied was 84% for both males and females.

The percentage of service users who reported being very or fairly satisfied with local authority sport and leisure facilities varied by age. 85% of adults aged 16-34 were very or fairly satisfied by facilities, compared with 81% of those aged 35-59 and 88% of those aged 60 or above.

Figure 7: Service users aged 60+ reported an 88% rate of satisfaction, versus 81% of 35-59 year olds.

Satisfaction with local authority sport and leisure facilities for service users by age group, Scotland, 2024

79% of adult service users with disabilities reported to be very or fairly satisfied with local sport and leisure facilities, with the figure rising to 85% for those without disabilities.

Figure 8: Adult service users without a disability were more satisfied with local authority sport and leisure facilities (85%) than those with a disability (79%).

Satisfaction with local authority sport and leisure facilities for service users by disability, Scotland, 2024

84% of adult service users living in the most deprived Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) quintile were very or fairly satisfied with their local authority sport and leisure facilities, compared to 86% of those living in the least deprived quintile.