Personal trainer contract types in the UK: employed, self-employed or renting space

Which contract types do personal trainers work under?

Gyms and studios offer trainers a handful of common set-ups, and the names vary from one venue to the next. In plain terms they fall into three groups: you are on the gym's payroll, you rent or licence space and keep what you earn from clients, or you work freelance and the gym takes a cut of each session.

No UK law sets a standard contract for a personal trainer working in a gym, so the terms you are offered are whatever that gym has drawn up. That makes it worth reading every offer line by line and comparing them side by side, rather than judging them on the headline rate.

Employee, worker or self-employed: what GOV.UK says

GOV.UK lists several employment statuses, including employee, worker and self-employed, and explains that a person's status helps determine their rights and their employer's responsibilities. It also notes that a person may have a different employment status in tax law.

GOV.UK says an employee is someone who works under an employment contract. It lists signs that point towards employee status: being required to work regularly, having a manager responsible for your workload and how the work is done, not being able to send someone else to do the work, and the business providing the tools and equipment.

A worker, in GOV.UK's description, has a contract to do work personally for a reward and has limited ability to subcontract. It says workers have fewer rights than employees.

For self-employed people, GOV.UK says a person is self-employed if they run their business for themselves and take responsibility for its success or failure. Its signs include quoting for work, not being under direct supervision, sending invoices, paying your own National Insurance and tax, and not getting holiday or sick pay.

The label in the contract is only one factor

A contract that calls you self-employed is one of several signs GOV.UK lists. The others are about how the work is actually done: who controls your hours and methods, whether you can send a substitute, and who provides the equipment. If a gym calls you self-employed but controls your schedule, your prices and your clients, the label may not tell the whole story.

The Health and Safety Executive makes a related point: you may be self-employed for tax purposes, but this may not be the case for health and safety. HMRC also publishes a tool, Check Employment Status for Tax, which it describes as giving HMRC's view of a worker's employment status based on the information you provide. If you are unsure, use it and consider taking advice from a qualified adviser.

What to compare before you sign a gym agreement

These points are general practice rather than legal requirements. Write the answers down for each offer so you can compare them fairly.

• Money. The rent, licence fee or percentage, when it is due, and what happens in a quiet month or a holiday.
• Who sets your prices and who collects and holds the client payments.
• Your clients. Whether you can train them elsewhere, and what happens to them if you leave.
• Restrictions. Any limit on working for other gyms or training outdoors, and how long it lasts after you leave.
• Insurance. What cover the gym requires you to hold, and what cover the gym has itself.
• Hours and access. Peak-time access, room hire, equipment, storage and cancellation of your slots.
• Ending the arrangement. Notice period on each side and what happens to deposits.
• Client data. Whose client list it is and who is responsible for the personal data you collect.

If you are employed, or self-employed

If you are an employee or a worker, GOV.UK says an employer must give you a document stating the main conditions of employment when you start work. The principal statement is due on the first day, with a wider written statement within 2 months. It covers matters such as pay, hours, holiday and place of work.

If you are self-employed, GOV.UK says you must register for Self Assessment as a sole trader once your earnings pass its threshold, and that you must keep records from the day you start trading. Keep your gym agreement, invoices and insurance certificates together with those records.

What a gym working-arrangement checklist should cover

A preview of our free Gym Working Arrangement Checklist. The complete, print-ready version is sent to you by email.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• Employment status: Employee, GOV.UK
• Employment status: Worker, GOV.UK
• Employment status: Self-employed and contractor, GOV.UK
• Check employment status for tax, GOV.UK (HMRC)
• Written statement of employment particulars, GOV.UK
• Set up as a sole trader, GOV.UK
• Health and safety for self-employed people, Health and Safety Executive