Leisure Time Recreation What is Leisure Time Leisure

Leisure Time & Recreation

What is Leisure Time? • Leisure time is when you are free to do what you choose • For students, leisure time is the time they have after school hours and for people who work, it’s the time they have after work

• People tend to spend their leisure time differently. Some watch tv, others decide to surf the net whilst many people decide to do something that keeps them physically active…

Leisure time has been increasing. The reasons why are; • • • Greater Automation at work and home Nowadays there are more machines capable of doing jobs and therefore people are left with more free time Shorter working week The average working week is now considerably shorter than it was before Unemployment levels These are higher. Some people are unable to obtain a full-time work and are therefore left with more spare time

Leisure Provision • The leisure industry is a modern one as it is quite recent • The local authorities generally provide the leisure services • Leisure services vary from public libraries, swimming pools or sports buildings, fun parks, etc

• It is not just local authorities who provide leisure services • Cinemas, discos and clubs for example are privately run and aim to make profit out of providing for the leisure needs of their customers

• How many leisure activities there are in your area? • What sort of activities do they offer? • How many different types of leisure activities can you identify?

Recreation • Recreation can mean relaxing or doing something amusing • Recreation is also used when doing something active and healthy • Recreation is something which can be done in your leisure time

Recreation & Leisure • The relationship between recreation and leisure is significant as those who provide us with leisure opportunities usually try to offer recreational activities • Example; Gyms are provided as leisure places in a particular locality, therefore active recreational activities are offered in the particular locality

• It is important that the providers of leisure services will be able to predict and follow the trends in leisure activities • These vary from time to time, and it can be difficult to provide for them • A clear example is the squash courts in England back in the 70’s and 80’s • Micro-scooters are a good example of a leisure trend that developed rapidly

Needs & Range • A difficulty in providing for recreation and leisure is the variety of people who have to be catered for in terms of age, ability and interest • Local authorities have to identify ‘user groups’. These usually fall into the following groups; 1. Mothers & young children 2. 3. Retired people Committed sportspeople 4. Unemployed people

• Obviously it is not possible to put on the same type of activities for all of these groups • Frequently there are concessions made for certain user groups, in the form of reduced fees and charges