7 gyms in London your boss will pay for (with Gympass)

4. Frame

• King’s Cross
• Angel
• Shoreditch

Frame, short for ‘Move Your Frame’ is a welcoming gym studio that promises fitness first, but fun second. Founded by two women, Pip Black and Joan Murphy, the brand’s classes tend to be low-intensity and focused on improving mobility and mindfulness. It also has a strong package for mums and pregnant women (ideal for those who are on maternity leave).

Gympass members can access three Frame gyms in Central London. Pricing starts on the Silver tier at £47.99 per month, making it one of the most affordable options on this list.

5. Fitness First

• Queen Victoria Street
• Bishopsgate
• Liverpool Street
• Gracechurch Street
• Fenchurch Street
• The Strand
• Tottenham Court Road
• Cottons

Starting a gym can be scary. Fitness First is focused on making newbies feel welcome. Every unit features sleek facilities with modern equipment and a wide selection of classes – from yoga to HIIT – making it a great place for larger teams to workout together without anyone feeling intimidated. You’ll also get a free 30-minute PT session when you sign up.

A Gympass pass offers access to eight Fitness First gyms in central London. Priced at the Silver tier for £47.99 per month, it’s a strong budget option for workers.

6. MoreYoga

• Haggerston
• Aldgate
• Soho
• Cannon Street
• Angel

Yogis unite. MoreYoga sells itself as “London’s most affordable yoga studios” and a Gympass membership enables its members to save an extra £10 per month. Helping you to feel good, and do good, it also donates a proportion of profits to selected refugee charities, ensuring those in a meaningful work role can also access a meaningful workout.

Available for just £29.99 per month on the Gympass Bronze tier, a MoreYoga membership will give you access to five prime locations to spend your lunch break rather than the desk.

7. Barry’s London

• St. Pauls
• London East

Known as ‘Barry’s bootcamp’, Barry’s London is built on the philosophy of ‘no pain, no gain’. The brand specialises in HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) workouts; a type of training that’s not for the faint-hearted. Workers can swap the boardroom for Barry’s Red Room, where HIIT sessions target specific areas of the body throughout the week.

Like F45, pricing for Barry’s two Central London locations starts from the Platinum tier, which costs £127.99 per month.

Why offer an employee gym membership?

Gym discount schemes, such as Gympass, work by providing access to a wide network of gyms, studios, and wellness apps. Employees can access everything with a single subscription and split the cost with their employer.

Employers can expect to pay around £50-£100 per employee, per month to sign up to a corporate program like Gympass. Certainly, this is a more expensive perk than free teas and coffees. But there is a real cost-benefit to investing in employee wellbeing.

Elevated levels of stress and burnout has been one of the contributing factors to today’s low workforce participation rate. Ensuring workers stay active and socialising will increase energy levels and  improve camaraderie and collaboration among colleagues – two areas that have taken a big hit as more of us work from home.

Another obvious benefit is in recruitment. For job seekers, a gym pass can be the deciding factor in whether to answer your job ad, or a rival’s. If you plan to implement a return to office policy, it may also be cheaper than offering a pay rise; which employees working in fully office-based roles now expect.

Employee perks prove to the workforce you care about their wellbeing. This will improve productivity and job satisfaction, reducing staff turnover and driving a positive company culture – all of which will raise the bar for your competitors to follow.