Faq

How many classes do I need to take to learn swimming?

In some books and/or web sites you can find that they suggest 20 sessions should be enough for an adult to learn how to swim. But we do NOT give a number as we don’t know how confident you are at the moment (as it might take some people a few hours only to gain water confidence and get in the pool ). It depends on a lot of factors, if you will practice in between lessons by yourself, how quickly you learn what the instructor is asking you to do, your general fitness etc. The best way is to have a few classes and then we will be able to give you a better idea of how many lessons you may need.

Private 1-2-1 and semi-private 2-2-1 classes.

What is a 1-2-1 lesson?

A 1-2-1 lesson is one swimmer/student to one instructor. Everyone is different. Whether it is your coordination , personality, buoyancy or health condition the lessons are tailored to your specific needs.

What is 2-2-1 lessons?

A 2-2-1 lesson is two swimmers to one instructor. We still tailor the lessons to suit the swimmers but so it suits both of them. We do request that swimmers are of the similar ability and if children are of a similar age to get the most out of your lesson.

What are the terms and conditions, and where can these be found?

Our terms and conditions can be found on the bottom of our website https://3sswim.co.uk/terms-and-conditions-3s-swim-school/

How do I book lessons?

Please make sure that when booking, you give all relevant information e.g. age of student if a child, swimming level of student if known and your postcode or the name of our nearest to you venue. The easiest way to book your lessons is by emailing us: [email protected] or text 07525328582

What is a crash course?

A crash course is where you book the same time slot with the same instructor everyday for a week. These can be booked as private or semi private lessons. It’s great for boosting progress or giving young swimmers to the best start.

Why to book crash course
What are the benefits? 
 
Regular weekly swimming lessons are great! But a short course of few consecutive days can help a child progress much faster. As with all learning a certain amount is retained while some is lost between lessons and needs to be re-taught. Short relatively intensive courses can, therefore, show dramatic improvements. Not only is the swimmer doing 5 weeks’ worth of training in 1 weeks, but they retain the knowledge better and their muscle memory improves.
What about new swimmers?
 
A crash course of between 3 and 6 days is the ideal way to get new swimmers up and running and enjoying their lessons going forward. Often very young children need to have their parent in the water at first and this period is reduced dramatically when daily swimming takes place. The swimmer grows in confidence and competence every day and develops a grounding for the weekly lessons to build upon.
 
What about swimmers with low confidence or a fear of water?
 
Low confidence and fear of water are generally solved through familiarity. A swimmer gets used to being in the water and understands that they are not in any danger. Daily exposure to the pool greatly accelerates this process. We see this where swimmers miss their weekly lessons, often their fear returns, and we need to re-familiarise them. With daily lessons there is no time for this regression and most often the effect is longer lasting.
Can it help us progress to the next level?
 
Swimmers who are nearly ready for the next level of competence can be helped over the line by an intensive set of lessons. We have seen the effect many times where a swimmer has seemed to plateau in their abilities and a short intensive course gives them the stimulus to go to the next level.
My child has been swimming with you for 2 terms, but wasn’t moved to the next stage?

We are very strict with our certification, to get the certificate, a child should get all the required boxes ticked for that stage. Even if one of the boxes is not ticked, we can’t provide you with the next stage certificate. We are not giving certificates only for the time swam with us, but for the skills learnt. For a full description of the certificates and requirements, you can go here https://3sswim.co.uk/certificates/

My child has passed their stage. When will they move up and get their certificate?

Certificates are given out at the end of each term. If your child has moved up a stage after the initial assessments at the beginning of term, they will move up immediately. If they have passed their stage at the end of term, they will be moved into the new stage at the beginning of the following term.

My child is quite young or nervous about having a swimming lessons, what can I do to prepare them?

If you have a young or nervous swimmer please make your instructor aware and #team3s will be happy to advice you on further steps. We advise trying to spend more time with them in a pool. Spend only to have FUN  and enjoy the time being in the water and we will do the rest; teaching them to swim.

Are parents of children in the 3 and 4 years old age required to get in the pool with their children?

No, from 3 years old we can run private 1-2-1 sessions. Our instructors will be in the water with your child/ren.

Where parents should wait during the session?

It all depends on the venue and shape pool. For the first few lessons we ask parents to be near the shallow end with their children. After the children get used to the new place and new instructor, we ask parents to sit on pool side, but as far from the lesson as possible. It helps children focus on the lesson and their instructor rather than looking at the parents or showing them something. During the Toddlers/Babies classes one of the parents/guardians should be in the water with the child at all times. If you have 2 kids, then we will need a parent/guardian for each child in the water. Parents of children under 8 are required to stay on poolside for the duration of the lesson. Parents of children aged 8 to 10 can leave the poolside during the lessons as long as they ensure they bring the child to the teacher on poolside at the beginning of the lesson and collect them from the teacher on poolside at the end of the lesson. Children aged 11 and over can come to the pool on their own as long as the parent decides it is safe to do so.

How many students are in a class? Groups ratio.

1-2-1 Private session one-to-one with the instructor.

2-2-1 (semi-Private session), when two swimmers/students with one instructor.

Groups for Adult beginners is MAX x4 swimmers.

Groups for children with MAX of 4 in a group.

FitSwim (Fitness Swimming) Class- Max 10 for one coach split in 2 separate lanes. It is a session for adults/masters of intermediate and advanced swimmers who can swim non-stop over a hundred meters and come to improve their swimming techniques, speed, distance or race preparation.

Do we provide single sex lessons and if so, who can come?

Unfortunately, we don’t currently offer sessions for women only or men only. We do have male and female swimming instructors, so you have a choice of teachers based on your personal preferences.

What should we bring with us?

Please bring suitable swimwear (one piece swimsuit for women), towel, goggles (we usually have some for sale on a pool side, but happy to recommend suitable ones to purchase too), swimming hat (we have 3S Swim branded ones for sale on pool side), flip flops (optional but recommended for safety on slippery floors as you cannot wear outdoor shoes on poolside), and shampoo/shower gel. Please ask if you need any additional information. We provide boards and any floatation devices that are needed to help you learn.

What stages/levels do you have for adults?

Beginners 1 – adults with a fear of water.

Beginners 2 – confident, but non swimmer learning to swim up to 25m .

Improvers – who can swim between 25m and 400m. Still working on a stroke improvement.

Advanced – who can swim over400m and working on developing their techniques, speed, distance, fitness swimming or race preparation).

Masters – are the same as advanced swimmers, confident and competent lane swimmers.

What stages / levels do you teach?

Our swim school follows a swim programme designed by ourselves closely aligned with the Swim England Learn to Swim Programme. The main difference between our stages and other schools is we have a stronger focus on safety in and around water.

You can find out more about our programme and of stages here. After you achieve all stages we offer a wide range of aquatic directions such as FinSwimming, Triathlon and Open Water sessions. Working in co operation with a few Swimming Clubs to direct our swimmers to them after our swimming school.

What age groups do you teach?

We have 4 main age groups: Babies and Adults 1 ages from 3month to 18 months old. Babies and Adults 2 ages 18-36 month Babies and Adults/pre-school from 3y-5y Children 4.5/5- 7years Juniors 7y-12 years Teenagers 12-16 years Adults/Masters (16 years old and over).