Battle · 4 companies
Health clubs
One makes a splash. Another is left treading water.
Nuffield Health leads on 2 of the five measures that matter most: turnover, pre-tax profit, profit margin, growth and net assets. Nuffield Health is the biggest by turnover at £1,485m, against £717m at David Lloyd. Bannatyne keeps the most of every £100 it takes, £9.97 as pre-tax profit.
The year ends are up to 12 months apart, so this compares each company's most recent filing rather than the same twelve months. Nuffield Health and Bannatyne file group accounts that include subsidiaries; Virgin Active files for a single company, which flatters the groups on size.
Accounts compared: David Lloyd to Dec 2024 · Virgin Active to Dec 2024 · Nuffield Health to Dec 2025 · Bannatyne to Dec 2025
The Numbers
| # | Company | Turnover | Change | Pre-tax profit | Margin | Employees | Pay per head | Turnover per head | Net assets | Bank and cash | Accounts to | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nuffield HealthNuffield Health | £1,485m | +2.2% | -£59m | -4.0% | 18,566 | £30,000 | £80,000 | £1,012m | £9m | Dec 2025 | Group |
| 2 | David LloydDavid Lloyd Leisure Limited | £717m | +13.8% | £55m | 7.6% | 5,773 | £34,000 | £124,000 | £468m | £4m | Dec 2024 | n/d |
| 3 | BannatyneThe Bannatyne Group Limited | £158m | +5.5% | £16m | 10.0% | 2,789 | £21,000 | £57,000 | £34m | £15m | Dec 2025 | Group |
| 4 | Virgin ActiveVirgin Active Limited | £130m | +8.3% | -£22m | -16.8% | 2,144 | £24,000 | £61,000 | £106m | £9m | Dec 2024 | Single company |
Ranked by turnover. Click any column to sort. The leader on each measure is highlighted. Movements are against each company's own prior year. Pre-tax profit is filed except where marked (est.).
Category winners
Biggest by turnover
Nuffield Health
£1,485m
Most pre-tax profit
David Lloyd
£55m
Highest profit margin
Bannatyne
10.0%
Fastest-growing turnover
David Lloyd
+13.8%
Biggest employer
Nuffield Health
18,566 staff
Highest pay per head
David Lloyd
£34,000
Most turnover per head
David Lloyd
£124,000
Largest net assets
Nuffield Health
£1,012m
Most cash
Bannatyne
£15m
The Takeaway
- Bannatyne converts the most of its turnover. Of every £100, £9.97 reaches pre-tax profit, against a loss of £16.81 at Virgin Active.
- Nuffield Health is the largest on the top line, £1,485m of turnover, 2.1x David Lloyd's £717m.
- David Lloyd is growing fastest, turnover +13.8% on its own prior year.
- Nuffield Health is the biggest employer with 18,566 people; David Lloyd pays the most per head, an average staff cost of about £34,000.
- Nuffield Health has the largest balance sheet, net assets of £1,012m, while Bannatyne holds the most cash at £15m.
Who keeps the most of every £100 of sales?
Bannatyne keeps the most: £9.97 of every £100 of turnover becomes pre-tax profit. Virgin Active does worst, losing £16.81.
Financing bites hardest at David Lloyd: £13.60 of every £100 goes on interest.
Every profit figure here is the one the company filed.
The chart splits each company's turnover into £100: what goes on people, on interest and on everything else, and what is left as profit.
Out of every £100 of turnover
Each column is £100 of that company's own turnover, so companies of any size compare on one scale; the figures are pounds out of each £100, not millions. Companies run from the best margin to the worst. Payroll is staff costs, financing is interest paid, other running costs are everything else, and profit is pre-tax profit, filed or estimated as marked in the table. A loss is not an extra cost: it is the part of the costs that runs past the £100 line, marked with a red bracket. Hover over any segment for its figure.
Who is the biggest, and does the comparison hold?
By turnover the order is Nuffield Health (£1,485m), David Lloyd (£717m), Bannatyne (£158m), Virgin Active (£130m).
By headcount, Nuffield Health leads with 18,566 employees.
The comparison holds with the dates stated plainly: David Lloyd to Dec 2024, Virgin Active to Dec 2024, Nuffield Health to Dec 2025, Bannatyne to Dec 2025. The bases differ: group accounts include the businesses a company owns, single-company accounts do not.
Turnover on the latest filing
Who is growing fastest?
David Lloyd grew fastest, turnover +13.8% on its own prior year, ahead of Virgin Active (+8.3%), Bannatyne (+5.5%), Nuffield Health (+2.2%).
Turnover change on each company's own prior year
Who employs the most, who pays the most, and who brings in the most per head?
Nuffield Health employs the most, 18,566 people, against 5,773 at David Lloyd.
David Lloyd has the highest average staff cost, about £34,000 a head; Bannatyne the lowest, about £21,000.
David Lloyd brings in the most turnover per employee, about £124,000, against £57,000 at Bannatyne. It says as much about the business model as the workforce: a marketplace or a wholesaler needs far fewer people per pound than a restaurant or a gym.
David Lloyd
5,773
employees, about £34,000 pay a head, £124,000 turnover a head, +5.4% on the year
Virgin Active
2,144
employees, about £24,000 pay a head, £61,000 turnover a head, -9.9% on the year
Nuffield Health
18,566
employees, about £30,000 pay a head, £80,000 turnover a head, -4.1% on the year
Bannatyne
2,789
employees, about £21,000 pay a head, £57,000 turnover a head, +0.6% on the year
Who owns each one?
Ownership as recorded on the Companies House register of people with significant control, in the bands the register uses.
Held by David Lloyd Leisure Group Limited
A company recorded as a person with significant control. 5 outstanding charges on the register.
Who owns David Lloyd →
Virgin Active Limited · 03448441Held by Virgin Active Holdings Limited
A company recorded as a person with significant control. 4 outstanding charges on the register.
Who owns Virgin Active →
Nuffield Health · 00576970No controller recorded
The register shows no person with significant control. 12 outstanding charges on the register.
Who owns Nuffield Health →
The Bannatyne Group Limited · 09618868Held by Mr Duncan Walker Bannatyne
An individual recorded as a person with significant control. 5 outstanding charges on the register.
Who owns Bannatyne →
What does the full ledger show?
| Measure | David Lloyd | Virgin Active | Nuffield Health | Bannatyne |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Registered name | DAVID LLOYD LEISURE LIMITED | VIRGIN ACTIVE LIMITED | NUFFIELD HEALTH | THE BANNATYNE GROUP LIMITED |
| Company number | 01516226 | 03448441 | 00576970 | 09618868 |
| Incorporated | 1980 | 1997 | 1957 | 2015 |
| Accounts filed | 30 July 2025 | 4 October 2025 | 7 July 2026 | 15 April 2026 |
| Turnover, prior year | £630m | £120m | £1,453m | £150m |
| Pre-tax profit, prior year | -£17m | -£15m | -£36m | £14m |
| Staff costs | £194m | £52m | £566m | £59m |
| Payroll share of turnover | 27.0% | 39.6% | 38.1% | 37.5% |
| Employees, prior year | 5,475 | 2,379 | 19,361 | 2,773 |
| Dividends paid | n/d | n/d | n/d | £6m |
| Charges outstanding | 5 | 4 | 12 | 5 |
A figure the filing does not disclose is shown as n/d; a zero in a filing is treated as not disclosed. Rounding: below £0.1m in thousands, £0.1m to £2m to one decimal place, above that to the nearest million.
Health clubs: common questions
Who is the biggest of David Lloyd, Virgin Active, Nuffield Health or Bannatyne?
Nuffield Health, with turnover of £1,485m in the year to December 2025.
Which makes the most profit?
David Lloyd: £55m pre-tax in the year to December 2024.
Which employs the most people?
Nuffield Health, with 18,566 employees in its latest accounts.
David Lloyd or Virgin Active: which is bigger?
David Lloyd, with turnover of £717m against £130m at Virgin Active on their latest filings. On margin, David Lloyd keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
David Lloyd or Nuffield Health: which is bigger?
Nuffield Health, with turnover of £1,485m against £717m at David Lloyd on their latest filings. On margin, David Lloyd keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
David Lloyd or Bannatyne: which is bigger?
David Lloyd, with turnover of £717m against £158m at Bannatyne on their latest filings. On margin, Bannatyne keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Virgin Active or Nuffield Health: which is bigger?
Nuffield Health, with turnover of £1,485m against £130m at Virgin Active on their latest filings. On margin, Nuffield Health keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Virgin Active or Bannatyne: which is bigger?
Bannatyne, with turnover of £158m against £130m at Virgin Active on their latest filings. On margin, Bannatyne keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Nuffield Health or Bannatyne: which is bigger?
Nuffield Health, with turnover of £1,485m against £158m at Bannatyne on their latest filings. On margin, Bannatyne keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Where do these figures come from?
Each company's latest accounts filed at Companies House. Each links to its full Spark Intel profile, which names the filing it comes from.
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