New research into England’s growing padel infrastructure shows that clubs are over six times more prevalent in areas of highest affluence than in areas with highest levels of deprivation.
The Padel Paper has been given a preview of research from the forthcoming UK Padel Report, set for publication in February by Ray Algar of Oxygen Consulting. The findings reveal a strong bias towards high-income, affluent neighbourhoods.
The data will deepen the concerns of many within the industry of an elitist nature to padel’s participation base, with lower-earning and inactive people unable to access the game and/or priced out of the opportunity to play.
Ray, founder of Oxygen Consulting, which delivers strategic business insights and research to the health, fitness and wellbeing industry, said: “My new research begs the question, how do we want this sport to develop and who do we want it to be played by?
“There’s a lot of data within it to be unpacked, but as padel grows in the UK, the industry needs to ask how it can be accessible across the nation and not perceived as a sport for affluent and already very active people? Importantly, does it need to be backed by strategically targeted investment into less affluent neighbourhoods?”
Ray’s analysis uses the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD), a government measure that ranks neighbourhoods based on factors such as income, health, education and housing, to identify areas of relative deprivation. Decile one represents the most deprived 10% of neighbourhoods in England, while decile 10 represents the most affluent 10%, highlighting the socio-economic divide.
Just six padel venues were listed as being located in decile one: Pure Padel in Manchester, Game4Padel at West View Leisure Centre in Preston, Powerleague Birmingham, The Padel Team (formerly We Are Padel) in Bristol, and two small outdoor venues in Torquay (Torquay Tennis Club and PDL Padel United).
One factor affecting the figures is the common addition of padel courts at pre-existing sports venues such as tennis and golf clubs, which may already be located in high-income areas.
It’s important to state that many clubs are actively striving to reverse this apparent bias towards a more affluent customer base. Soul Padel in Stockport and We Are Padel in Derby are just two examples of operators who run initatives aimed at widening access to underserved groups.
Ray observes similarities in padel’s growth to that of the UK fitness industry in the early stages of its boom. It was initially dominated by private health clubs serving primarily wealthier communities, but this began to change with more affordable operators such as The Gym Group and PureGym democratising the industry through strategically investing in less affluent areas.
Interestingly, John Treharne, founder of the Gym Group, has this week been announced as Chair of The Padel Club.
Oxygen Consulting is seeking a single sponsor for the UK Padel Report, which is set to be published in full at the end of February.
