Glasgow Life, the city council's arm's length sports and heritage company, could be asked to pay fees to allow its own fitness instructors to run classes in the city's parks.

Glasgow City Council is considering asking commercial groups holding exercise classes in public green spaces to pay for a permit.

A council spokesman told the Evening Times that Glasgow Life, which runs a jogging network and other outdoor classes, would be expected to pay like other groups using parks such as Kelvingrove.

It is understood the council is keen to recoup as much money as possible from use of the city's green spaces.

However, Glasgow Life, which manages the parks, said it "didn't expect any impact" on coach-led services if a fee system is introduced.

The council has written to fitness instructors in the city and said two had come back saying they would be happy to pay a fee.

At least three local authorities in Scotland - East Renfrewshire, East Lothian and North Lanarkshire - are asking commercial groups holding exercise classes in parks to apply and pay for a permit.

In East Renfrewshire and North Lanarkshire, fees depend on the number of participants and sessions.

East Lothian charges £6.70 an hour, £25.60 for up to four hours and £50 for a full day.

A spokesman for Glasgow City Council stressed discussions were at a "very early stage".

The move has been welcomed by some industry experts, who claim it will prevent "cowboys" from setting up exercise classes with little training.

But others have questioned how councils can police the scheme, and one instructor said they feared the charges were too high for small businesses.

A spokesman for Glasgow Life said: "A number of our programmes use parks.

"Discussions remain at an early stage, but we don't expect any impact on our coach-led services."

The outdoor fitness industry has gone through a boom in recent years and almost every park now hosts exercise boot camps, circuit classes and running groups.

Councils say the permits let them control the number of groups using parks and ensure instructors are trained and insured.

A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said: "We don't have a charging policy for exercise classes in parks.

"However, we would ask that anyone leading a class to act with ­consideration to other park users."

The council has also hiked prices for events in George Square which involve more than 2000 people.

All commercial operators can expect to pay, while charities and the council's own family of arm's-length companies get discounts.

caroline.wilson@ eveningtimes.co.uk