We been using this leisure centre for few years now for different activities and it's always a good experience for adults and children. Stuff is friendly and helpful and the place is looked after. Hav... See more
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Location
Switch locationCathall Road, E11 4LA Leytonstone, GB
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Friendly staff. However below areas that can be improved, water dispenser in gym does not work . Toilets can be monitored more frequently
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Great to have a pool locally and gym facilities and sauna. The staff are all very lovely and helpful. Unfortunately the swimming showers are always quite stinky and get a lot of bugs especially in sum... See more
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Staff i came across were excellent and friendly, particularly the lady in reception. The facility looked reasonably clean. The only issue I had along with other users were the water from showers are... See more
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Company details
Written by the company
Welcome to Better! We’re a charitable social enterprise, committed to the health and wellbeing of everyone in our community. From gyms, leisure centres and swimming pools to lessons and courses for both adults and juniors - plus libraries and children's centres - we've got it all. So whether you’d like to try something new, keep the kids entertained or have a dip in the pool, discover our inclusive range of activities, suitable for all ages and abilities at your local Better centre today.
Contact info
Cathall Road, E11 4LA, Leytonstone, United Kingdom
4.0
Great
76 reviews
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Vicentiu who was working there was…
Vicentiu who was working there was really professional and we really appreciate the way he looks after the room! Everything tidy and clean.
July 2, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Nathia
Thank you for your fantastic review!
We are so delighted to hear that you are enjoying Leytonstone liesure centre.
We pride ourselves on providing excellent customer service and are happy that this has been reflected in the service you have received.
We have also passed on your comments to the centre!
Warm Regards
Aaiasa
great centre 100% recommend great…
great centre 100% recommend great facilities also, warm welcome as always when entering
June 2, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Chantae
Thank you for your review and recommendation.
We are very pleased to see you are having a great experience at the Leytonstone Leisure Centre, and the staff are creating a warm atmosphere!
We hope you continue to enjoy using the facilities, and thank you for choosing Better.
Kind Regards
Amir
Do better with the pool timetable!
I really like having a local swimming pool just around the corner and the first couple of times I booked into swim on a Sunday, it was perfect. Not too busy, quiet enough to get lots of laps done in an hour without feeling super pressured by people faster than me. The booking website also shows how many "spaces" are available for each session, which I would understand as being somewhat of an indicator as to how busy the pool will be.
Sadly the last two times I have booked in for Swim fitness, half of the pool (lengthwise) had been roped off - one time for a synchronised swimming lesson which only needed the deep end of the pool; and one time most of the pool was taken up by a huge inflatable play area thing and the swim fitness session was squashed into two narrow lanes to one side. It was incredibly busy and stressful trying to swim without bumping into anyone. Clearly the "spaces left" markers on the booking page don't mean anything.
The other thing I found particularly frustrating was the lifeguards "swim testing" young children in one of the swim for fitness lanes, meaning not only do the adults need to avoid bumping into a child (as we should take care to do), but the adults get splashed to high heaven. These tests could have taken place on the other side of the pool next to the inflatable water thing without causing anyone any issue.
Don't get me wrong - kids need space to swim and enjoy the pool too. We should provide swimming lessons! However if it's going to take up so much room, just cancel the swim fitness session for the day. I'd rather see the session as unavailable than turn up to a massively overcrowded pool.
Please do better, Better. I'd hate to have to stop going to the pool because it's getting so stupidly overcrowded. This must be a health and safety thing regarding lifeguards to number of people in the pool also!
May 26, 2025
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Laura,
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience with us. We’re really glad to hear that you’ve enjoyed your initial visits to the Leytonstone Leisure Centre and found the pool a great place to swim laps in a relaxed environment — that’s exactly what we aim to provide.
We’re sorry to hear about the recent frustrations during your Swim Fitness sessions. Your feedback about the roped-off areas, inflatable setups, and swim testing during adult swim time is completely understandable. We appreciate you pointing out how these changes impacted your experience, and we agree that all users, whether swimming for fitness or recreation, deserve a safe and comfortable environment.
We’re reviewing how we manage the pool layout and how session availability is reflected in our booking system to ensure it accurately matches the on-the-day setup. We also take your point seriously about the impact on lane swimmers when other activities are introduced unexpectedly — your suggestion to remove or limit Swim Fitness sessions on days when space is significantly reduced is a valuable one.
Thank you again for your honest feedback. It helps us improve and balance the needs of all our pool users more effectively. We hope to welcome you back soon under better circumstances and provide the kind of experience that first brought you in.
Best regards,
Charmaine
Changing to this pool was so easy!
Changing to this pool was so easy!
We miss our lovely teacher at the last pool but her recommendation to go to the big pool was brilliant and he loves his new teacher!
Thank you
May 21, 2025
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Rebecca,
Thanks for your review.
We are delighted to hear how much you love Leytonstone Leisure Centre!
Warm Regards
Hazal
Good value for money
Easy to book swimming and gym on the app. Facilities in the centre for the price I pay for my membership are more than adequate.
May 12, 2025
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Nadia,
Thanks for your review.
We are so glad to hear that you are so happy with the app and facilities at Leytonstone!
Warm Regards
Hazal
I revisited the new improved centre…
I revisited the new improved centre after a decade absence and was impressed by the upgrades to pool, changing rooms, showers etc. BUT the pool chaos and uninformed reception staff are formidable. I asked about schools visiting to avoid these times and was told inaccurately to avoid 11-12 daily. I did arriving Monday 2pm to find pool packed with school and swimmers. No room to swim and witnessed people literally fighting for space.. very unpleasant and poorly managed way and waste of my entrance fee. I understand leisure centres need to make money to survive, but honesty and transparency are key to sustaining client goodwill. I asked again a reception guy after the same question and hilariously was told to avoid between 10 to 6 everyday with 1 hr lunchtime exception. Is this even accurate and why can't we see a schedule and be told about when schools are visiting , accurately? They must know.. please can this be addressed otherwise I see another decade absence looming?
May 12, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Russ,
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We're genuinely pleased to hear that you were impressed with the upgrades to our facilities after your return—your recognition of the improvements to our pool, changing rooms, and showers is greatly appreciated.
However, we're truly sorry to hear about the frustrating experience you had regarding pool availability and the conflicting information provided by our team. We understand how disappointing it must have been to arrive expecting a quieter session, only to find the pool overcrowded and the situation poorly managed. That is not the standard we strive for.
Your concerns about transparency, especially around school bookings and general pool scheduling, are completely valid. We do have scheduling information available, but it’s clear from your experience that it was not communicated effectively. We’re currently reviewing our processes to ensure that up-to-date and accurate pool timetables, including school bookings, are clearly displayed both at reception and online, so our visitors can plan their visits with confidence.
We'll also be addressing the training of our reception team to ensure consistent and accurate information is given to all guests.
We really hope you won’t let this one experience deter you from visiting again. Your feedback is invaluable, and we’re committed to improving both the communication and overall experience for all our visitors.
Warm regards,
Charmaine
5 Star!!
Lovely staff, great facilities!
I highly recommend Leytonstone Leisure Centre!
May 12, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Jay
Thank you for your review and recommendation.
We are delighted to hear that you are enjoying the facilities at Leytonstone Leisure Centre and have had the chance to meet our staff!
Thank you for choosing Better.
Kind Regards
Amir
I came in this morning for a swim with…
I came in this morning for a swim with no booking and was greeted by a lovely receptionist who showed me how to download the app so i was able to book myself in
May 12, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Darnell,
Thank you for sharing your experience!
We're thrilled to hear that our receptionist was able to assist you so well and help you get set up with the app. We’re glad you enjoyed your swim, and we hope to see you back again soon! If you need any further assistance, don't hesitate to reach out.
Kind regards,
Charmaine
Staff so friendly and helpful
Staff so friendly and helpful. Linda on reception made sure I was booked in when I did two classes on the trot and only booked myself in for the first one. The facilities and instructors are really good. So glad I decided to join Better - it has really made me feel better both. physically and mentally.
April 15, 2025
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Laura,
Thank you so much for your kind and thoughtful review!
We're delighted to hear that you've had such a positive experience with us.
A big shout-out to Linda on reception—she’ll be so pleased to know she made a difference by helping you with your bookings!
It’s also wonderful to hear that our facilities, instructors, and classes have had such a positive impact on both your physical and mental well-being.
That’s exactly what we strive for at Better, and your feedback truly means a lot to us.
We’re so glad you decided to join and look forward to supporting you on your fitness journey!
Small children needs more attention and care
Samuel is new to swimming and needs some attention to be comfortable in the water. Yesterday he fell in the water and was crying alone sitting at the pool side. The teachers need to console a small child to get their confidence and come back to the class. We ended up taking him out of the class at this point. He is not willing to come back to the class now.
April 15, 2025
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Shinu,
We’re really sorry to hear that Samuel isn’t enjoying his swim lessons at the moment. Thank you so much for bringing this to our attention.
We’ll be sharing your comments with the Centre team so they’re aware of the situation. We genuinely hope Samuel will continue with his lessons, as we’d love the opportunity to turn his experience into a positive one and help him grow into a happy, confident swimmer.
Please don't hesitate to reach out to us directly via email customerservices@gll.org, we are always here to help.
Warm regards,
Sarah H
difficult to change swimming lessons …
We went into the centre to swap my daughter's swimming lessons from one local pool to another. The worker could not do this, we were told we needed to call customer services. She did give the number, which was helpful. There was a queue of people including an elderly man struggling to book something online. There was a general sense that what should be simple tasks are made complex by very poor systems.
I went home and called customer services after making a pointless trip and paying for parking at the leisure centre. It was sorted, but only after being on hold for 10 minutes. Do better.
April 10, 2025
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Eleanor,
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience with us. We’re very sorry that the issue you were facing wasn’t able to be resolved during your visit to the Centre. We completely understand how frustrating it must have been, especially after making the trip to speak with our staff directly. We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience this has caused.
Our excellent customer service team is here to assist you, and you can reach them directly at customerservices@gll.org for further assistance.
Thank you again for sharing your feedback, and we appreciate your understanding.
Kind regards,
Sarah H
It's a very nice place for swimming
It's a very nice place for swimming, but I would appreciate if the lessons held would be separated from normal swimming...since I joined more than half of the lanes are always busy with swimming lessons and we find there's like 7 people fighting for the other 2 available ones...the water temp is very good. I also love the sauna too. I would just work on the lessons part a bit. Otherwise it's all great!
April 2, 2025
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Ioana,
Thank you for sharing your feedback!
We’re glad to hear that you enjoy the water temperature and sauna at the Leytonstone Leisure Centre. We also appreciate your comments about the swimming lessons. We understand that it can get crowded at times, and we’ll certainly take your suggestion into consideration to help create a better experience for all of our swimmers. We're always looking for ways to improve, and your input helps us do just that. We hope to see you again soon!
Best regards,
Charmaine
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Yuliia,
Thank you so much for your positive review! We're thrilled to hear that you’re enjoying our gym and the new equipment at the Leytonstone Leisure Centre. We put a lot of effort into making sure our facilities provide the best experience for our members, and it’s fantastic to know that it’s making a difference for you.
If you ever need assistance with the equipment or have any suggestions on how we can improve even further, feel free to reach out. We’re always here to help and make your fitness journey the best it can be! Hope to see you around soon!
Kind regards,
Charmaine
Leytonstone leisure centre is worth joining
First I would like to mention two people Julinda and Colin who have been more than helpful.
Have rejoined Better after over 10 year absence, I have noticed the major improvement in the structure, the machines and the quality of the staff and the cleanliness. I found Leytonstone really suits me and has a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. They deserve five stars but I kept tripping over the base of various machines in the gym (it is the same colour as the floor) A contrasting tape at the bottom of the machine would really help. I don't like the music, however, I turn my hearing aid off!
March 14, 2025
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Louise,
Thank you so much for your thoughtful feedback! We're thrilled to hear that your experience at Leytonstone has been positive, and we truly appreciate you recognising Julinda and Colin for their helpfulness. It's wonderful that you've noticed the improvements in the gym's structure, equipment, and cleanliness over the years.
We also appreciate your suggestion about the machine bases. We'll definitely take that into consideration to improve safety and ease of movement. We’ll also look into ways to make the music experience more enjoyable for everyone.
Thanks again for sharing your thoughts, and we look forward to continuing to provide you with a great experience at Better!
Kind regards,
Charmaine
First timer with my Special need child
As a first timer with my Special need kid which I indicated in the submission I expected a little bit of information about what to do when we get there. Only for us to be told you can’t get into the dressing room with your shoes and a lot of instructions. My first day was horrible and we didn’t even go again. We went for just one section because I wasn’t ready for all the stress again. Was quite disappointed though. However the teachers were amazing and they have two stars. Just the entire first experience was horrible.
February 5, 2025
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Ammaa,
Thank you for sharing your feedback, and I’m really sorry to hear that your experience didn’t meet your expectations.
We strive to make every visit as smooth and welcoming as possible, especially for first-time guests and those with special needs. I truly understand how overwhelming the first visit can be, and I appreciate your patience in sharing your thoughts.
I’m glad to hear the teachers made a positive impression, and I’ll be sure to pass that along to them! In the future, we’ll work on providing clearer communication and guidance ahead of your visit to avoid any confusion or stress. Your feedback is invaluable, and we’ll make sure to improve the overall experience for families like yours.
If you’re willing to give it another try, we’d love to have you back and do everything we can to make your next visit more enjoyable. Please feel free to reach out directly so we can ensure your needs are fully met next time!
Kind regards,
Charmaine
Been with Better years ago after my…
Been with Better years ago after my heart surgery and returning again. As always top professionalism and attitude of helping in a subtle non-intrusive way, making everything as seamless as possible. Thank you.
January 20, 2025
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Good Evening Galin,
Thank you for your review.
We are very happy to hear that you are returning as a member after your heart surgery. We look forward to welcoming you back to your Health & Fitness after being away due to medical issues.
We strive to create a welcoming atmosphere for all our members, and your feedback reinforces our commitment to providing excellent service.
Thank you once again for your thoughtful comments. We look forward to seeing you at the centre soon!
Best regards,
Charmaine
I am deeply dissatisfied with how this…
I am deeply dissatisfied with how this leisure centre conducts its business. I recently paid for a membership and the joining fee, believing I was getting the best deal, only to find out shortly after that they increased their discounted membership rates. This feels like a complete slap in the face to loyal members who have already committed to paying upfront.
It’s clear they are more interested in exploiting their members than providing fair value. There was absolutely no communication or transparency about potential changes, leaving me feeling misled and undervalued. I regret signing up and would not recommend this centre to anyone looking for a trustworthy and customer-focused facility. Avoid at all costs!
January 11, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Victor
Thank you for taking the time to leave a review.
The price increase is an annual occurrence that reflects economic inflation. As a charitable social enterprise, any money we make goes back into the business. This can be in the form of training our staff, improving our centres, services and the overall experience for our members.
Further to this, we have to look at the long-term viability of the centre. With increasing utility and other operational costs we have had to decide to increase all membership fees by a minimal amount, to ensure the survival of the centre so that we can support the community for years to come.
Kind Regards
Amir
I’m absolutely disgusted by the lack of…
I’m absolutely disgusted by the lack of action from the management of [Leisure Centre Name]. Extremist notes, calling to kill ukrainians (russian language) within already 3 years being left around the facility is not only deeply concerning but poses a real threat to the safety and well-being of everyone using the centre. How can you, as management, remain silent and fail to take immediate and decisive action against such blatant acts of intimidation and hatred? Despite you are aware of this nonsence.
These incidents are not minor; they are serious and dangerous, creating an unsafe environment for families, children, and the community as a whole. Your inaction sends the message that this behaviour is tolerated, which is absolutely unacceptable.
We deserve a leisure centre that promotes inclusion, safety, and respect—not one that allows extremist messages to spread unchecked. It’s time for the management to step up, address the issue publicly, and ensure proper measures are in place to prevent this from happening again. If you won’t act, the community will!
Do your job—protect the people who use your facility!
January 11, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Dear Petro,
Thank you for bringing this deeply concerning matter to our attention. We take allegations of this nature extremely seriously, as the safety and well-being of our community is our utmost priority.
We are truly sorry to hear about your experience and any distress this situation may have caused. We want to assure you that we are fully committed to providing a safe, welcoming, and inclusive environment for everyone using our facilities.
To address this issue effectively, we kindly ask you to get in touch with us directly and provide further details about the incidents you’ve described. This will help us investigate thoroughly and take the necessary steps to resolve the matter as a priority. You can reach us at Leytonstone@gll.org.
Thank you for raising your concerns and for helping us ensure that our leisure centre remains a safe and respectful space for all.
Leytonstone Leisure Centre has a great community
Leytonstone Leisure Centre has a great mix of community and has been apart of my everyday routine for the last two years. I look forward to seeing familiar faces and the staff are also very welcoming. Julinda is usually at front desk and it's always a pleasure to be greeted with a smile. Starts the day with a positive note and genuinely cares about the welfare and problems of the customers who are unsure or need guidance.
I was taken ill and had incurred a penalty. Julinda was very helpful,handled the problem with grace and wished me well.
It was very much appreciated after being off ill for a couple of months
Very much appreciated
January 7, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Good Morning Sandy,
I hope this message finds you well.
Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts in your recent review. We are genuinely thrilled to hear that your experience at Leytonstone Leisure Centre has been so positive. Our team works hard to create a welcoming and friendly atmosphere, and it’s wonderful to know that our staff has made you feel at home.
We’re also delighted to hear about your interaction with Julinda. It’s great that she was able to assist you in resolving the penalty fee issue due to your illness. Our goal is to ensure that our members feel supported, especially in difficult situations, so it’s rewarding to hear that our efforts made a difference for you.
If there’s anything else we can do to enhance your experience or if you have additional feedback, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We truly value your membership and look forward to continuing to provide you with an excellent experience at our centre.
Warm regards,
Charmaine
good response
good response. I am now renewed for a year. I have not been for a swim at Cathall for a few months because of bowel cancer which is now cured. I will return there when the roof is fixed. Maureen
December 13, 2024
Unprompted review
Reply from Better - Leytonstone Leisure Centre
Hi Maureen,
Thanks for your review.
We are so happy to hear that your health has improved - congratulations!!!
We look forward to welcoming you back in the new year.
Warm Regards
Hazal
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