Swimming clubs across the Borough, including Wilmslow's Scorpions, face an uncertain future after being told they can no longer use the local leisure centre to deliver their swimming lessons.
Clubs have been informed by Everybody Sport & Recreation, a charitable trust set up by Cheshire East Council in 2014 to run 15 leisure centres and swimming pools across the Borough, that they will no longer allow swimming clubs to deliver lessons in their pools.
Due to financial reasons Everybody Sport & Recreation will be delivering the 'Learn to Swim Scheme' in house. However, they will allow Wilmslow Scorpions, who have been in operation for over 30 years and delivering Learn to Swim and competitive swimming throughout this time, to hire the pool for the more advanced club swimmers.
Wilmslow Scorpions is a not for profit organisation and competitive swimming club that offers the opportunity for members to participate in a pathway to competitive swimming and coaching which starts with their Learn To Swim (LTS) provision. Everybody Is insisting that the club ceases to deliver their LTS scheme by March 2017.
Chief Coach Pauline Busby told wilmslow.co.uk " The LTS part of Wilmslow Scorpions provides the financial stability and continuity to enable members to enjoy their swimming, compete with other clubs and have every opportunity to excel. If the demands of the Everybody Trust are carried through it is felt that a valuable social and pastoral element of the club will be lost and a concern that swimmers will also find the transition to club swimming/ competition more difficult, resulting in lower levels of participation in the sport.
"The threat by Everybody of taking back the LTS along with/or charging higher rates for pool use could prove to be a financial burden the club cannot sustain as our LTS represents 40% of the club's total revenue with just over a hundred swimmers in the LTS Category. As a not for profit organisation the LTS contribution is vital for our survival, giving us the funding we need to continue to support our members through their competitive swimming journey. The club will have to consider introducing other elements to replace revenue lost."
Wilmslow Scorpions currently employs eight teachers/coaches, some of which they will have to let go as they lose their Learn to Swim programme.
Pauline continued "Our senior swimmers frequently volunteer as 'helpers in the water' with the LTS swimmers as part of their service requirements of the Duke of Edinburgh Award. From this they very often go on to gain their swimming teacher/coach qualifications, an opportunity lost (a pathway gone) by the loss of our LTS sessions."
She added "The timing of our LTS provision is vital to families where both parents work. Our LTS provision starts at 7pm 2 evenings per week whereas the Leisure Centre provision is from 4 – 6pm."
Everybody Sport and Recreation issued the following statement to wilmslow.co.uk:
"As is the case with a large number of other operators, Everybody Sport and Recreation follows the governing body's preferred swimming pathway. Our approach will result in the Trust delivering the Learn to Swim (ASA Stages 1-7) in house, enabling swimming clubs to focus on the competitive element and other aquatic disciplines such as water polo, lifesaving and synchronised swimming from Stage 7+. We have worked with the ASA and our proposals are in line with common practice across the country.
"Realistic time frames have been established to ensure the viability of all clubs and individual swimmers will be offered the opportunity to transfer onto the Everybody Learn to Swim Scheme, where they will also be provided with access to free public swimming to aid in their development.
"It is not the case that we are closing any swimming clubs down. We have involved the swimming clubs in the consultation process which started some months ago, working with them to agree the best way forward. This has ensured we are able to offer our clubs reduced hire rates and increased times in which they can access our pools.
"We envisage that after developing sound basic swimming techniques with qualified swimming teachers with 'Everybody SWIM', many swimmers will progress on to a variety of swimming pathways including one of the swimming clubs that we are working with at our centres, and build towards competitive club swimming."
Comments
Here's what readers have had to say so far. Why not add your thoughts below.
So in my opinion you can thank the following two types of people for this.
1) The people who voted conservative in the May 2015 local elections.
and
2) The people who didn't bother to vote in the May 2015 local elections.
Just my opinion. Other people are quite welcome to have a different one and express it.
Learn to Swim programme where my kids' swimming has improved so much. This was after them stagnating for many terms (at great expense!) under the leisure centre learn to swim programme. The Scorpions swimming lessons are so much better organised with sensible class sizes and additional support from the helpers actually in the pool who can quickly correct and help the youngsters with their technique. For a so called not for profit community company to effectively wreck the local swimming club development programme beggars belief. If this goes ahead I and many others will never use the Leisure Centre again.