Sharks Swimming Academy – FAQs

Q. What age do we teach children to swim?

A. We accept children on our learn to swim programme from the age of five, unless it is a dedicated parent and baby class. This is due to their maturity and understanding to learn.

Q. How long will it take to learn to swim?

A. This depends on the individual, who could be nervous or have no fear of the water. Learning to swim is a personal challenge and different people take different amounts of time to overcome those challenges and achieve their goals. A child could learn to swim in as little as five lessons or it could take them 25 lessons, it all depends on their starting ability, their fears and feel for the water.

Q. How many lessons?

A. All people are different but it is recommended that they should swim a minimum of once per week, around 10 lessons should give a good basic ability to swim and float. If a beginner does not swim regularly it could impact on their progression and affect their confidence.

Q. Is there anything I can do to prepare my child before participating in swimming lessons?

A. It is ideally recommended that the child should be potty trained, unless it is a dedicated parent and baby class. Exposure to water play in the bath or ideally in a swimming pool will save a significant amount of time and reduce stress for the swimmer and the parent.

Q. Is there anything I need to bring for the swimming lesson?

A. A towel and a practical swimming costume, no bikinis or baggie shorts. Ideally girls should wear a full swimming costume and boys should wear swimming trunks.

Q. Can goggles be worn?

A. Our policy is to teach without goggles until pupils can swim safely, unless they have a medical condition. Goggles are not worn for water safety sessions. More advanced swimmers are encouraged to wear goggles for health and safety reasons, as they swim faster and need good vision to carry out turns and swim in a straight line.

Q. Should we bring our own equipment?

A. We will provide all the equipment needed unless pupils are swimming lengths and then we will ask them to bring their own kick boards, pull-buoys and training flippers. Other equipment, such as armbands and flotation aids are not used.

Q. What time should I arrive for my lesson?

A. Please arrive ten minutes before the lesson starts so there is time to get changed and get in to the pool for the start of the lesson.

Q. Can I watch my child swim?

A. This depends on the facilities at the pool, unless a designated area is provided we do not encourage poolside attendance, as this tends to distract the child and teacher. However, parents or guardians need to remain on premises for health and safety reasons.

Q. What to expect on the first lesson?

A. On their first lesson the pupil will most likely be nervous. Depending on their ability, the first lesson will be an induction to water safety, sometimes just walking across the pool with a progression on to swimming with a woggle or float. The lesson will be fun and the teacher or the assistant or both will be in the water.

Q. How many other people will be in the class?

A. Depending on the lesson 4-6 others will be in the class. For lane swimming a maximum number of 6-8 can be expected. There will be at least one teacher per group and depending on the groups ability there will also be an assistant.

Q. Can you tailor a swim programme for my pool?

A. We can tailor a quality swim programme, which would be suited to your pool. We can provide qualified staff trained by us and all administration timetabling and marketing would also be done by us. We have full public and employee liability insurance, are registered with the ASA and with over 30 years of successful swim programmes we will make excellent use of your pool for you and your community.