• TRANSPARENCY AND UPHOLDING THE HIGHEST STANDARDS

Governance

As a national governing body, we pride ourselves in our transparency and upholding the highest standards across our work. Below you can find more information about our governance, policies and procedures, and other helpful downloads.

Safeguarding

At EMD UK, we want all children and young people to have a positive, safe and enjoyable experience when taking part in group exercise. We also strive to ensure that all staff, teachers and volunteers are clear on what is expected of them when engaging with young people and that best practice is central to all group exercise activities.

Find more on our safeguarding practices and get yourself clued up here.

Equality and Diversity

Equality within EMD UK is all about fairness, equality of access, recognising inequalities and taking steps to address them. It is about changing the culture and structure of physical activity and sport to ensure that it becomes equally accessible to all members of society, whatever their age, ability, gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality or socio-economic status.

EMD UK is committed to achieving gender parity and even greater diversity on its Board in order to lead by example when providing equitable guidance and governance to its member organisations.

You can view our Equality and Diversity Policy here.

You can view our Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan (DIAP) here.

You can view our EDI strategy here.

Strategy

Corporate Governance

Available downloads:

Accounts

Available downloads:

Board of directors

Samantha Cullum – EMD UK Chair

Having spent a significant amount of her early career in the health and wellness industry, as Director of Operations for YMCAfit, Operations Director for FitPro, Chair of the Women’s Sports Foundation and as a part of the core team that set up Les Mills UK, Samantha has a solid understanding of the fitness sector.

In the last ten years she has worked with a diverse set of organisations from design, spa and fitness to architecture and PPE; advising Board and Senior Teams; helping them to take their next leap forward and increasingly to support them to develop and deliver a digital strategy, taking products and service online and in-app.

Samantha is CEO and Co-Founder of Upstartr. In that role she has led business set up, integration, expansion and the operational roll out of product and service in the UK, Europe and the US. Most recently to support Carifit with the development of a baby carrier and complimentary parenting wellness app – launched in John Lewis Partners earlier this year and internationally in the Autumn.

Born Barikor – Independent Director and Welfare and Safety Champion

Born is the CEO and founder of Our Parks, an initiative that provides free group exercise classes in local community parks. Born is passionate about converting inactive people to regular class goers and has an aim of getting one million people fit for free by 2025.

Born has won a number of awards for his community work, including BT Sport Industry Community Programme of the Year in 2017 and a Black British Business Award in 2019.

Sarah Durnford – Independent Director and EDI champion

Sarah Durnford is the Instructor Experience Development Director at Les Mills UK. Sarah is passionate about creating gold standard education for group exercise instructors and ensuring fitness professionals feel supported in their careers. As an ex-trainer and fitness presenter, Sarah knows the challenges, highs and lows that instructors face.

Stuart Armstrong – Independent Director

Profile to Follow

Dan Rees – CEO of EMD UK

Dan began his career as an instructor and has since held senior leadership and advisory roles across some of the UK’s leading education, awarding and community provision providers.

Dan has extensive expertise in the fitness sector including education, training, regulatory development and public health. He is recognised for his passion for scaling organisations, building commercial success, and championing equal access to physical activity. Dan consults nationally and internationally, supporting the sector through strategic development and initiatives that improve the opportunities for both professionals and communities.ㅤㅤ

Rob Lander – Independent Director

Having spent over two decades in the health and fitness sector, Rob began his career as a Group Fitness Instructor before working as a Personal Trainer for over 15 years. This hands on experience has given him a strong understanding of the operational realities and challenges faced by fitness professionals and operators.

As Co Founder and CEO of Fisikal, Rob has led the growth of the business from early stage concept through to a globally deployed platform, supporting operators across the UK, Europe and the US. He has worked closely with partners and operators to develop digital solutions that enhance booking, coaching, and member engagement, while integrating alongside existing systems.

In recent years, Rob has focused on helping organisations evolve their digital offering, bringing together technology and operational delivery to create connected and scalable fitness experiences.

Complaints Procedure

As the national governing body for group exercise, we strive to give every instructor and customer the best service possible.

You can view our complaints procedure here.