Bristol swimming club fears for future after teaching ban
A BRISTOL swimming club fears for its future due to a ban on teaching youngsters in council-run pools.
The Portway Swimming Club, which has taught an estimated 3,000 youngsters how to swim during the past 70 years, uses council-owned Henbury Pool for its twice-weekly sessions.
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Henbury Pool
But from April 1, the club will no longer be able to use the pool to teach their newest recruits – usually the youngest aged five and six upwards – because of a new contract between the council and a firm called Sports and Leisure Management (SLM) which runs most of the council’s leisure centres.
The contract means only SLM will be able to provide lessons in council-run pools to swimmers who are taking the first seven levels of Learn to Swim’s National Teaching Plan. Swimmers taking higher levels of the plan are not affected.
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Club secretary Caroline Wilkins said the contract would effectively cut off its supply of new members and therefore put its future in doubt.
The club currently has 105 members, 35 of whom would be affected by the ban.
The club is hoping to use a pool at Bradley Stoke to provide sessions for its youngest members but it is not clear how long the arrangement might continue.
Bristol North West Tory MP Charlotte Leslie, a former swimming champion, has accused the council of trying to monopolise tuition at the expense of the city’s clubs.
There are six swimming clubs in the city but it is understood only one other – The Penguins, based at Easton – is also affected.
Ms Leslie said: “It was with utter dismay that I spoke with parents from north Bristol who told me that a new dictat from the city council means that lessons for younger swimmers will be taken out of the jurisdiction of fine clubs like Portway from April, giving a virtual monopoly for the organisations running our leisure centres.
“This means that although the clubs, in theory, could continue to offer the lessons, they cannot do it in council-run pools, making it prohibitive for all sorts of reasons.
“In the period when we are supposed to have an Olympic legacy, this centralisation seems utterly ridiculous, not to mention disgraceful.
“Parents have told me that when their children are forced to have lessons with the sports centre management organisations, there are frequent cases of cancellations. Significantly, the parents tell me that the whole experience of lessons through the clubs is much more positive.
“We are now in the situation where parents who are dissatisfied with the teaching from the Learn-to-Swim sessions run by the leisure centre contractors will approach clubs like Portway only to be told: ‘We’d love to teach your child but the council won’t let us.’
“I am deeply concerned that this is a misguided policy set up to simply make money for the leisure centres.”
Ms Leslie is supporting a petition launched by the Portway club and has also begun a more wide-ranging petition aimed at tackling the problem across the whole city.
The petitions can be found at: www.change.org/petitions/bristol- city-council-sos-save-our-swimming and also keepclubswimming.bristolpetitions.com.
Darren Jones, Labour’s prospective candidate for Bristol North West, said: “The Portway Swimming Club is a Bristol institution.
“It’s trained generations of young people across the constituency. The proposed changes will bring the future survival of the club into question and will be a significant loss to local families if it were to go.
“In the first year of legacy after the 2012 GB Olympic games I just can’t understand why the council would take steps towards such an outcome.”
A council spokeswoman said: “We have worked with local swimming clubs in the city to determine the future delivery of swimming lessons. And in partnership with the ASA and national guidance, it has been agreed the council’s sports providers will take this on. They are well-placed to provide swimming lessons to young learners and improvers, they have professional, qualified staff on hand and can programme appropriate pool time for learners. This move will happen over a planned period of time – which is starting now.
“Parents can rest assured they will not have to criss-cross the city to access quality swimming lessons for their children – there is flexibility for pool time within the timetable at Bristol pools for children to swim locally and together.
“Local swim clubs will continue to be a respected and valuable asset to swimming in Bristol. Their experience and expertise will take swimmers to the next level – and they are still able and encouraged to offer swimming lessons at levels 8, 9 and 10 of the National Teaching Plan.”
5 Comments
by BendelBoy
Tuesday, February 26 2013, 7:47PM
“*retain*”
by BendelBoy
Tuesday, February 26 2013, 7:45PM
“I have been present at meetings where the ASA rep backed up the council officers when the clubs requested that they be allowed to train their learn to swim. If it wasn't ASA policy it certainly had support, and was treated as policy, by the ASA rep. However the council never issued minutes for these meetings.”
by redmike
Tuesday, February 26 2013, 12:32PM
“As both a parent of children who learnt to swim at the club, and as a non-paid volunteer lifeguard for 4 yrs. I am saddened at the news. The club is not ran as a business and puts the kids first, there are social activities like BBQs and Galas where the kids can compete against one another. My daughter still has her swimming medals hung up in her room.
A big issue at the time of my involvement in the club, was that many parents sending their kids to the SGL Splash sessions were amazed when they saw the progress that other children made when swimming for Portway, many enrolled with Portway as a result.
Safety was never an issue as all of the volunteers are CRB checked and trained to the same standards as the pool staff. This is just an attempt to squeeze out a well established club so that the pool time can be used to generate more profit.
The only losers will be the youngsters who will not have access to a well run and supported club like Portway and many others under threat.
I really enjoyed my time whilst involved with the club, it must be allowed to continue.
Come on George Ferguson, you like to stand up for the independants of Bristol, please show some support to this cause.”
by Masked_Marvel
Tuesday, February 26 2013, 10:20AM
“Mr. Onions, as part of your reasearch for this piece, were you able to determine which council officers, if any, have a direct or family association with SLM?”
by Dafootmaster
Tuesday, February 26 2013, 7:29AM
“Reaction from Bristol Swimming Clubs:
There was 2 year's of consultation with BCC and the Bristol Swimming Clubs and ultimately the proposed plan was rejected by the majority of the Clubs, including Portway SC. BCC then had a meeting EXCLUDING those Clubs - but including the pool providers - in which they agreed to push on with their plan. Portway SC are still resolutely opposed to it as it would stop 35 children from having swimming their lessons - and more children if you include the other affected clubs.
Reaction from the ASA:
Alison Usher, the ASA Regional Director for the SW, is meeting with the City Council on Wednesday, to advise and discuss the options available. She will also be meeting Glos ASA and further more will arrange to meet the club to find a way to make the situation work. There are a few inaccuracies in the statement from the City Council regarding a national ASA Partnership that Alison will ensure to correct.
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There is no ASA policy driving BCC to take the decision they have regarding the learn to swim. It was their decision - taken by them alone - and they really needed to consult with those affected much better than they have. I'm afraid they will have to justify their decision without hiding behind the ASA.
KS
GCASA Secretary”