Charlie Duckworth on scaling a not-for-profit sauna movement

**Welcome to Small Business Sessions, brought to you by Enterprise Nation as part of** Powering Local Businesses**, our collaboration with EDF Small Business and Square.** In this series, we're speaking to founders and entrepreneurs about the real stories behind starting, growing and rebuilding small businesses. Expect honest conversations, practical lessons and first-hand insight from people who have built businesses with purpose. In this episode of the series, we're joined by Charlie Duckworth, founder of Community Sauna Baths, the not-for-profit social enterprise making sauna and cold plunge more affordable and accessible across London. Charlie shares how the idea came together after the pandemic, why he wanted to create a regular, community-focused sauna experience outside of expensive gyms and spas, and how the business grew from a low-cost garden site into a five-site operation. He also talks about operating as a community interest company, working with local authorities, funding outreach sessions and building a wider movement through the Community Sauna Network. **Topics discussed in the episode:** - Why Charlie wanted to create a regular sauna experience that focused on heat, cold and social connection - Setting up as a community interest company and why the not-for-profit model mattered from the start - Finding a landlord willing to take a chance on the idea and starting in a low-fi garden space - Funding new sites through pre-sale tickets, discounted sessions, small loans and reinvested income - How Community Sauna Baths uses paid tickets to fund outreach, free sessions and local community work - Working with the NHS through social prescribing and bringing people into sauna through GP referrals - Charlie's ambition to bring community sauna facilities to every London borough by 2030 \----- **Powering Local Businesses** We're helping small businesses thrive on the high street – through expert support, smart energy advice and practical tools to grow sustainably. Get free support now