Setting the scene for the World Leisure Journal special edition on leisure management

This article sets the scene for the range of issues that could be addressed in the World Leisure Journal special edition on leisure management. The management and delivery of leisure programmes and services is the foundation of community leisure. Leisure management textbooks provide guidelines and direction for leisure programme delivery but there is limited research about how leisure programmes and services are delivered and evaluated. This paper provides a summary of a range of considerations about leisure management and community leisure programmes and services. After decades of leisure services delivery, there is still a need for public leisure managers to provide a rationale for why they deliver services. Five legitimations based on health, socialization, economic impact, community development and national identity provide a further consideration for what needs to be better understood about leisure management.