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B z Issue
6Winter Special 2015
STA’s official magazine forswim school businesses
Interested in building your
own pool?Pg 18
Who can believe we are in November already, but what a busy autumn we’ve had. We’ve shared some of the highlights with you in this issue - including our popular ‘Back to School’ Junior Medic campaign.
Happy reading – and may I take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported and taken part in our campaigns this year. Here’s looking forward to more exciting swimming adventures in 2016.
We also hear from Ben Sabin from the Little Swimming Company Ltd on page 16, who has recently built his own pool – a subject we know is very topical at the moment. The results of our 2015 swimming teachers’ recruitment survey are also featured in detail, alongside news of a Swimming Teacher Apprentice Course we will be piloting in 2016. There’s also our regular swim school business and marketing articles, and news from our Swim Stars – including an interview with Lynn Goring-Crook from Southern Swim School about what it’s like being a Swim Star Swim School.
Swim Schools: please forward all your news and articles for consideration in future issues of Swim Biz to [email protected]
Zoe Cooper,Sales & Marketing Director
The opinions expressed in this journal are those of the authorsand do not represent those of STA ©2015.All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by means, electronic, mechanical,photocopying, recording, computerised or otherwise without priorarrangement with the STA.
Swim Biz is published by:
Anchor House, Birch Street, Walsall, West Midlands WS2 8HZTel: +44 (0)1922 645097Fax: +44 (0)1922 720628e: [email protected]
Registered Charity Number 1051631
Hello, welcome to STA’s Swim Biz magazine for Swim Schools
ContentsSTA News
Business
STA Swim Star Swim School Profile
Swim Star Partners
Marketing
TechnicalFun & Games
3-9
10-12
13
24
14-15
16-23
25-26
3 STA Swim School News
STA Re-shapes Senior Management Team
Both Zoe and Claire said:
“We are delighted to be given this opportunity to manage STA and its dedicated team of staff on the next stage of its growth. In addition to fully supporting our members and customers, we will be looking to further increase STA’s reach by giving more opportunities for people to access our courses and teach important lifesaving skills to children and adults of all ages and abilities”.
STA is pleased to confirm new changes to the senior management team. As announced at this year’s conference, Zoe Cooper is moving up into a Sales and Marketing Director role and Claire Brisbourne has been promoted to Operations Director.
As of 1st November 2015, both Zoe and Claire will spearhead the management of STA alongside current FinancialDirector, Stuart Tanfield. All will report directly to the Board of Trustees; Dave Candler, Lee Robinson, Richard Timms and Robbie Phillips.
Our aim as always will be to ensure we continue to lead the way and provide the aquatics industry with the best value, and the highest standard of service and training - and as a Board of Trustees we believe we have the right senior management structure in place to lead this charge”.
Dave Candler, Trustee and STA President said:
“We are delighted that Zoe, Claire and Stuart have agreed to take-up these new senior roles. As a team, with a proven track record at STA and within the leisure industry, they have the skills and experience needed to lead our organisation into the future and in line with our charitable objectives.
This new composition of technical, commercial, operational and financial talent forms an integral part of our plans for the future development of our swimming and aquatics, lifesaving, first aid and pool plant programmes, which are at the heart of STA.
4 STA Swim School News
Delegates gather from around the nation to attend STA’s Annual Conference 2015This year, STA’s Annual Conference welcomed over 120 delegates across the nation, to Aztec Hotel & Spa in Bristol. With vast networking opportunities, professional speakers and sharing of expert knowledge over swimming, lifesaving/first aid and pool plant disciplines, delegates came away with lots of new information and ideas.
To start proceedings, we welcomed MP Charlotte Leslie, who officially opened the conference this year. As a campaigner and supporter for swimming and lifesaving, she gave an inspiring speech that set a positive tone for the day.
Following the response from last year, the conference saw to promote the flexibility of repeated seminars, offering delegates the opportunity to attend all that they desired. With sessions additionally varying over topics such as
‘Voice Protection’, ‘Deaf Swimming’, ‘Assessing Asthma’ and ‘Energy Cost Saving In Swimming Facilities’ (to name a few), attendees were offered a broad range of subjects to choose from.
Throughout the day, delegates were eager to take advantage of the exclusive discounts held on STA’s Swim Shop. Due to such a magnificent response, the marketing team at STA will be working on how to promote even more exciting offers for STA’s Conference 2016.
Head of Marketing, Mark Ray, had this to say about the day: “The feedback and response has been extremely positive and enthusiastic. Thank you to all those who attended STA’s Annual Conference 2015; it was a pleasure to meet with you.
With plans and changes already being thought about for next year’s event, it really is full steam ahead to make it even better in the future. Keep checking back to STA’s website after the new year to see what we’ve got planned. See you then!”
“This year’s conference was a
great improvement on last years. So
many topics, great range of skills!” (Kate Woolven)
“Really enjoyable and informative
day.” (Lynne Robshaw)
“The venue chosen was by far the best I have ever attended. 99% of the
talks were great and very informative.
Staff were lovely and approachable as always.
Well done STA, see you next year!”
The week allowed us to promote the importance of teaching children first aid skills and the response has been fantastic!
Thank you to those that took part in this vital campaign; you really have made a difference.
If you missed out, don’t worry! – You have the flexibility to teach the Junior Medic Programme any time of the year. Simply purchase our Junior Medic Manual and get started! For more information, please email [email protected]
Hundreds of children got the chance to be involved with STA’s lifesaving ‘Junior Medic: Back To School’ campaign in September. The week was organised to allow schools and swim schools to begin a fresh term with children developing and learning vital life skills from the onset.
The motive behind ‘Junior Medic; Back to School’ was to provide children with the opportunity to develop lifesaving skills which they could use in situations where an adult isn’t readily available. With increased debates in the press about whose responsibility it is to teach first aid to children, we have responded via this campaign to say that it is the duty of everyone who is qualified to do so.
The campaign was supported with our free, downloadable resources which involved worksheets tailored to both Key Stage 3 and 4, as well as other engaging resources such as a word search and crossword.
Children became lifesaving heroes this SeptemberWe were also excited to announce the launch of two new products to aid the teaching and learning of the course. The first being a mini first aid pack (including: latex free gloves, bandage, face shield, plaster and a triangular bandage) contained within a wonderful junior medic, branded drawstring bag.
The campaign saw the launch of the second product; the reusable, durable and child friendly Mini Anne Plus manikin. Accurate CPR compressions and CPR are imperative when learning first aid however with a firmer manikin, we felt children were unable to master the correct technique and that too with effect. For more information on these products, please email [email protected]
5 STA Swim School News
This can be taught by anyone who holds an FAW or EFAW
R O A H G R B A E X X G H I E
W O O Y V N C F L T T D I P E
G D A P T L I A B O Q E Z D A
P C W O V P C K C Y G I X C D
S A G T I M Y A O S O H P M A
X K V H Y G M O L H C I D R M
V B H E G G R F N K C E W X H
A P D R R W P O L C G C L W T
O H T M M L S V W L B V P H S
N L T I S E Y S P E L I P E A
T Q A A B K T J W C K D Q A N
I O X L C W N N U K R E T W I
L K E O P D X K T S L I K L G
B E H I A Z U P T F B Z J H I
D S Z D A I O Z D J W D N X M䰀漀漀欀 愀琀 琀栀攀 瀀椀挀琀甀爀攀猀 戀攀氀漀眀⸀ 䄀猀猀攀猀猀 眀栀愀琀 栀愀猀 栀愀瀀瀀攀渀攀搀Ⰰ 琀栀攀 椀渀樀甀爀礀 愀渀搀 琀栀攀 琀爀攀愀琀洀攀渀琀⸀
Check out the Junior
Medic Promo
6 STA Swim School News
Get ready for STA’s Black Friday BonanzaOn Friday 27th November, STA will be taking part in the international sales event ‘Black Friday’ by launching remarkable offers over a variety of products on the STA website. These deals will lead into ‘Cyber Monday’ (30th November) providing our customers a 4 day opportunity to take advantage of some truly great deals.
Keep an eye on our social media pages and website to receive regular updates and sneak peaks on what’s going to be up for grabs!
We’ll see you then!
#save2savelives#STAblackFriday
Download STA’s Water Safety Activity Booklet For FreeEarlier this year you saw the launch of STA’s new Health and Wellbeing Booklets (a comprehensive water safety learning aid for children aged eight and over). The response has been incredible and we would like to thank you for supporting our new drowning prevention resource!
As an educational charity dedicated to the preservation of human life by the teaching of swimming, lifesaving and survival techniques, we are keen to spread the water safety message even further. We are pleased to announce that you are now able to take advantage of a FREE downloadable version of the popular booklet on STA’s website. Alternatively, if you prefer a printed copy, they remain priced at just 50p each and are available to buy via STA’s Swim Shop.
“We knew as a charity we had to do something more practical to educate children and families about water safety.
This free booklet is a brilliant tool for teaching children about water safety outside of a pool environment. It can also be used by swim schools as an additional aid to their swimming programmes.”
Zoe Cooper, STA’s Sales and Marketing Director
What are the Health and Wellbeing Booklets?
STA has created a digital version of its bright and colourful 40-page booklet to enable teachers and club leaders to easily download this valuable resource, and use in lessons to help youngsters learn how to be safe in and around water.
Aimed at children aged eight and over, it looks at how to stay safe in the pool and in the sea, as well as general water safety awareness in different environments and potential hazards.
Swim schools from all across the UK walked the plank on the19th September and took park in Hft’s ‘Talk Like a Pirate Day’ Campaign. In September, we supported the national charity, Hft in their aim to transform the lives of those with learning disabilities.
In February STA’s marketing team went to visit their Shropshire and Staffordshire site to find some of their fantastic work. The residential care to support the living of those with learning disabilities was truly inspiring. The team were extremely motivated to work closely with them and to support them where they could and with the help of those organisations that took part, we were able to do just that. The engagement for the campaign was extraordinary from the beginning. With numerous emails and phone calls requesting further information on who Hft were and how organisations could get involved, the STA office were overjoyed with the response. But it didn’t end there…
Throughout the 19th September, our social media accounts were bursting with excitement from your posts. A big thank you to all those who took part and shared their activities with us.
We salute you for fundraising with your sincerest gratitude!
Please note: If you are yet to donate your funds, please contact Jenny Heslegrave via [email protected]
Shiver me timbers!September saw swimming pirates!
7 STA Swim School News
On 15th October 2015, the Resuscitation Council (UK) and the European Resuscitation Council published new resuscitation guidelines.
The changes follow the review of resuscitation science by the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR), and are aimed at simplifying clinical practice, enhancing education, and improving outcomes.
STA’s technical team are now reviewing the new guidelines, which contain detailed information about basic
and advanced life support for adults and paediatrics. Also included are guidelines for the use of Automated External Defibrillators and other related topics.
Following this review, STA will provide full detailed information on the update process required. In the meantime you are advised to continue to deliver STA training in line with our current manuals / resources.
New Resuscitation Guidelines
8 STA Swim School News
STA Launches new website to meet user needsSTA has launched a brand new website that enables visitors to the site to find exactly what they are looking for quickly and efficiently. The new design follows extensive monitoring of how visitors use the website; evaluating which pages or services are used the most.
Click on to STA.co.uk and you’ll see that from the revamped homepage, visitors now have one-click access to the most popular and frequented pages of the website. It’s also less clunky, focusing more on what we do and how people use the website, as opposed to following our organisation’s structure. There is also a massively improved search facility available.
The clean, modern-looking site also works exceptionally well on mobile and tablet devices.
Brett Preston, STA’s Head of IT said: “With so much information to present, we’ve thought long and hard as a team about what our members and customers need when they log on to the site and how they search for courses, news, and resources.
We believe the new design is now more functional and will make it far easier for people to navigate and find what they need on the website quickly. We are really pleased with the user-friendly, uncluttered design, too because it uses the screen space to maximum effect.”
The site features distinct sections on STA qualifications, awards, and services, as well as a dedicated membership section.
“Our new STA Search facility has also been completely re-built from the ground-up, making it easier than ever before to find upcoming courses, seminars, jobs and nearby pools. Prospective candidates can even enquire about upcoming courses with the organisers directly through the search facility!” added Brett.
Check out our new and improved
website at www.sta.co.uk
9 STA Swim School News
Swim Star hosts charity ballSwimtime franchisees scoopawards
Water Lilies Swimming School in Norfolk and Suffolk raises £5,000 for charities Walking with the Wounded and Elizabeth’s Legacy of Hope.
STA Swim Star Swim School Water Lilies Swimming School hosted a black tie charity ball last weekend in aid of thetwo locally based charities. Double amputee RAF Regiment Sergeant Duncan Slater – who trekked across the Antarctic to the SouthPole with Prince Harry in 2013 for Walking with the Wounded – receives the cheque from Teresa Griffin,
Swimtime – the UK’s largest swimming lesson franchise – staged its first ever awards ceremony for its franchisees and teachers, at its annual conference. Swimtime West Midlands owner, Heather Ratcliffe (pictured below) scooped Franchisee of the Year as well as being awarded for growth, across Swimtime’s 26 franchises. Heather impressed the judges by building a strong ‘backroom’ management structure and securing the largest percentage growth in turnover this year. The 26-year-old commented: “It’s such a surprise to win the top award, and I feel incredibly proud. I’ve worked really hard alongside my team to grow the business in the West Midlands region, so it’s lovely that it’s been recognised. I know we were up against some long-established and more experienced franchisees, which makes it even more gratifying.” Yorkshire-based Matthew Rudd – who has also recently been honoured with STA’s second Swim Star Teacher Award – was recognised for his outstanding achievements as a swimming teacher. Swimtime director, Linda Price, added: “We feel very lucky to have an amazing group of franchisees and exceptional teachers across the UK, so we set out to launch a scheme to show them how much we value them. It was tough to choose between them, but Heather’s efforts and achievements really shone, whilst Matthew’s professional yet fun teaching style simply had to be recognised . “We’d like to say a big thank you to our sponsors – including Ault, The British Franchise Association and swimming goggles specialist, Vorgee – for their support as well.” Prizes were awarded for corporate social responsibility, social media splash and print and press presence, to name a few categories.
owner of the independent swimming school along with Victoria Bacon, founder of Elizabeth’s Legacy of Hope.
Teresa said: We received such an incredible amount of support and generosity from local businesses as well as from our fantastic community of families and friends at the swimming school. It has been heartwarming and lots of fun too! Speaking with Victoria and Duncan we know that every penny of the money raised will help to positively change the lives of many amputee children in India,
Siberia and Sierra Leone and wounded service men and women in the UK. “
Teresa Griffin Water Lilies Swimming School is an STA Bronze Mark independent swimming school which teaches 1400 babies, children and adults each week across Norfolk and Suffolk. Teresa Griffin was awarded the STA’s national Sir Henry Pike Award in 2013 for outstanding contribution to water safety and swimming education.
10 STA Swim Star Swim School Profile
Swim School Feature - I’m a Swim Star Swim SchoolSTA’s Leanne Husselbee spoke with Lynn Goring-Crook from Southern Swim School about what it’s like being a Swim Star Swim School.
As a previous ASA teacher, what made you join the STA?
Paul Linkins, Julia Spacey and I who run Southern Swim Schools were born and bred ASA with myself first qualifying as a teacher 17 years ago but when we started the swim school the ASA never quite fitted the bill. About 8 years ago I started to hear a real ‘buzz’ about STA, many swim school owners who I knew were talking about the STA and the International Learn to Swim programme with real enthusiasm and excitement. It seemed something was changing and the STA were appealing to a gap in the market. Around this time we trialled the badge scheme at our biggest venue, Springfield Swim Club and we saw instantly why so many people were swapping to the STA. We also noticed on interviewing potential swimming teachers a massive difference in quality between the ASA teachers and STA ones. Something about the STA, the set up and how it was run and where it seemed to be heading made us really excited and we wanted to get on board. The rest as they say is history. Now it’s 2015 we are a Swim Star Swim School, with the STA running through everything we do and Paul and I are qualified STA
Aquatic Tutors having successfully just tutored our first set of trainee swimming teachers whom are all about to start work with us.
Why did you decide to become a Swim Star Swim School?
Joining the scheme was recommended to us by several other swim school owners we had met at various STA events, when I looked into the benefits it was one of the easiest decisions we have ever made. It just made perfect sense to pursue being a Swim Star Swim School and reap the benefits.
Is the quality of the service you receive from STA (since becoming a Swim Star Swim School), worth the value of the accreditations?
Totally! The service we receive from our designated STA account manager is second to none. Leanne is always touching base with us or is there to answer any queries we have quickly. I always feel someone is there for us and that is really reassuring. As such a large swim school, we have really seen the benefit from swim shop discount also.
Cont...
How has your business developed since becoming a Swim Star Swim School?
Without doubt becoming a Swim Star Swim School has raised our profile. We are the only one in our area at present with that badge of recognition and it does draw attention to potential customers. But more importantly it has helped us move the swim school in the direction we wanted, improving on our admin, professionalism and quality further.
Why do you think having an STA Mark accreditation to a swim school isimportant?
A recognised seal of approval is important to any swim school as you are able to stand out from the competition and makes it easier for potential customers and parents to easily identify the quality of our swim school. It also gives you confidence as a swim school owner to know you are doing everything
correctly, not cutting corners and making sure you really are aiming to be the best.
I am aware that you also use our ‘International Learn To Swim’ aquatic programme. What results have you seen since using this in your swim school?
The learn to swim programme has completely changed the way our 1200 swimmers progress through the swim school. We trialled it to begin with at one venue with about 400 swimmers of all different levels but straight away saw how it challenged the swimmers but also the teachers too, to up their game. It is clear, well laid out and progressive. Our swimmers and parents now clearly know where they are and where they are heading. With swimmers from starfish all the way up to Gold Swimmer we are now just waiting to produce our first Platinum Swimmer. We have also recently introduced the Junior Lifeguard Scheme to our Activity Session which has been a massive hit and gives more advanced swimmers a different avenue to travel should they wish.
11 STA Swim Star Swim School Profile
12 STA Swim Star Swim School Profile Who will be next... If you would like to be considered for our next ‘Swim Star Teacher’ award to support the Swim Star Swim School programme, then please send us in no more than 200 words:
Winning testimonials and the winning teacher’s profile will be used on the STA website, as well as being featured in the Swim & Save eZine, in SwimBiz and on our social media pages.
The winning teacher will also receive a special ‘Swim Star Teacher’ certificate. Achieving the award also gives you a great local PR opportunity!
• Information about your swimming classes
• Your achievements and stories• A photograph • Two (or more) testimonials from
the Mums and Dads of your little swimmers
• Anything else you think will make you stand out above the rest!
How to submit?
Send the nominated teacher’s name and contact details, name of swim school, where your/their swimming class is based and all your entry materials to [email protected]
The STA ‘Swim Star Teacher’ Award is proudly supported by our Swim Star partners - Vorgee, Konfidence and Pool Platforms.
Swimtime Yorkshire Teacher Success!
We are delighted to announce the winner of this season’s Swim Star Teacher Award, Matthew Rudd, a swimming instructor from Swimtime Yorkshire!
Swimtime Yorkshire franchisee owner, Samantha McCabe, submitted a nomination for Matthewdescribing in detail why he is a great swimming teacher.
Samantha quoted: “Matthew is an energetic teacher who gives 110% to his learners. He puts in extra time and effort not only for his beginner swimmer’s but extra sessions for those who are trying to achieve Bronze, Silver and Gold awards. During school holidays he has personally offered additional sessions to those who are experiencing problems achieving their goals. Matthew is a team player in his role at Swimtime and offers advice to new teachers he works alongside with.”
training and competing as a kid myself. We teach a life skill, far more than we teach a sport or a hobby, and so we have a vital and important role to play in shaping a kid’s life and reassuring parents of their safety. I am privileged to be doing this for a living every day.
This award will hopefully help me become an even better teacher and motivate me even more to get as many kids around Hull and East Yorkshire swimming strongly and happily as I possibly can. I’m very touched by it.”
She was keen to celebrate his inspiring work and we were equally enthusiastic to present him with this award. STA’s Zoe Cooper said, “We set up the Swim Star Teacher Award to celebrate the hard work from STA swim teachers and what a great example Matthew has set. We are thrilled to have such committed teachers like Matthew who have gone the extra mile to ensure their learners achieve the very best. Well Done Matthew!”
Upon receiving the award, Matthew was very surprised to have been nominated for the award, however once it had sunk in, he informed us of how proud he was.
He stated: “Swimming is my family obsession, and I’m getting as much joy, if not more, from seeing young kids grow into confident, gifted swimmers who are safe, strong and determined, as I did when I was
13 Business by Maria Timperley
Be different - Stand out from the CrowdIn a crowded market, don’t be afraid of being different – be afraid of being the same as everyone elseA swim school is a swim school. Right? Wrong.
In many ways, although you might find it irksome, one swim school is very much like another. What swim school doesn’t say that they offer small classes, great value, super teachers, excellent results, a personal and friendly service in a supportive and nourishing environment? Well ok, you might not use those exact words, but the gist is the same – we all believe our swim school is the best around. (After all, for goodness sake, if you didn’t believe this then you probably wouldn’t be shouting about it anyway.)
And this is not a bad thing. If all swim schools are offering a great service for a great price with well trained and experienced teachers then we are doing a good job for the public. Well done us!
We strive hard to create a point of difference in our product or service when oftentimes all we need to do, is do what we do really well and make sure to tell the right people about it – before, during and after they have used our service. Being flexible, innovative and responsive to customer needs is important but you do not have to reinvent the wheel nor divert from your path if it takes you far off your plan.
There are very few unique businesses out there and so most of us are in a crowded market
fighting for our piece of the customer’s purse, their busy schedule, their head space ……. So how can we do this? By being YOU. YOU are the thing that makes your business different to mine – and to the swim school down the road from you. People buy from People. Be human.
Look at yourself and understand what your personal strengths are - who you are. Then you can differentiate yourself and your business by being YOU in your communication and in your relationship building. Be authentic. Don’t be afraid to be who you are. Talk to your customers. And demonstrate that you are different from your competitors through word and deed. Ask them if you are doing a good job and LISTEN to their replies. Build on your strengths and work hard to eradicate the weaknesses.
Be honest with yourself and seriously consider what (swim) business you are in. Who are the people that you really want to work with and what it is they want and need from you. How do they prefer to be communicated with? What do they like and consider has value? Do their values match your own? Where do they hangout in real life and online? Would you want to hang out with them? Who do they listen to? Who has credibility for them? Can you access that channel? What do they consider to be the cherry on the top of the (service) cake? Can you deliver that?
Now you know who your preferred customers are - remember that you cannot be all things to all men – and how to get your word in their ears, SHOW WHO YOU ARE TO THEM. Take the time to focus on building relationships and value them and they will value you. No one else can be YOU as good as you can be YOU.
Maria Timperley of Metabolous Education CIC provides a business mentoring service for small businesses of all types. She is also the founder of the Swim School Owners Network, an extension of the Swim Teachers Network on
Facebook, a group for all independent swim school owners to share best practice, discuss issues affecting their business, to seek advice and gather new ideas for running a better business. Contact Maria at [email protected]
14 Marketing
E-MarketingBy Ravinder Sandhu, STA Marketing Assistant
3 reasons why offering an e-newsletter to your clients is a great marketing toolAlthough social media is an imperative communication platform for every business, the traditional e-newsletter still stands in a strong (if not stronger) position. Research shows that more people go online to check emails in comparison to social media sites. As businesses we must keep on top of trends and ensure our communication platforms are open to engagement.
So what can an e-newsletter offer your business that social media can’t?
1) A higher return and a genuine interest:
Although gaining a mass market is important and social media is a great platform for an elevated outreach, you are competing with hundreds of other posts as well as, an elongated newsfeed. Send out e-newsletters to your active subscribers who are actually curious for information on your business and observe how the engagement towards your business increases!
3) Maintain your business presence:
Send little reminders to your customers to let them know that you’re still there. Share exclusive and valuable information like tip and tricks, current trends and company news. Invest more time in providing effective communication to current and potential customers and open the doors to engagement by promoting competitions and asking readers what they’d like you to cover in the next e-newsletter. Utilise your social media accounts by advertising what you will be covering in your latest newsletter along with how your followers can subscribe. Don’t give it all away, remember – you’ll be offering exclusive information to subscribers.
2) It’s personal:
Have you ever tried sending out directed tweets to one person at a time or sent out several Facebook posts to individual accounts to promote a product or service? If you have, you’ll know how time consuming this can be. If you’re using the right tools and email marketing services, take advantage of sending an email to all of your subscribers at once and make it personal with just a couple of clicks. Don’t forget that not all your customers will be using or checking social media to see your updates. In fact, you may have previously received messages on social media with an email contact request.
Top Tips!
• Offer a freebie or a discount on your services to gain new subscribers • Keep your customers updated with company news, exclusive offers, new
products and services and current trends on a regular basis • Invest a part of your budget towards using services from email marketing
providers e.g. dotMailer, MailChimp, Campaign Monitor, Vertical Response to name a few• If you use these services, take advantage of scheduling your emails in
advance during busy periods so you can focus on other business needs• Analyse your email statistics. Find out who and how many people have
and have not opened your emails. Evaluate the pattern, continue doing great marketing and implement changes were the engagement seems weak
• Don’t make your e-newsletters too long. Pictures really do tell a thousand words
• Keep content in every e-newsletter specific, friendly and creative • Promote your social media sites on your e-newsletters. Allow readers to
tweet/share about your current update.
15 Marketing
Can you describe your business in less than 60 seconds?
Marketing your business verbally and in a concise manner is an essential tool all owners/directors/managers must be able to do. It is critical that you represent yourself, your organisation, and the services you offer with the justification it deserves.
It is recommended that you have your 60 second ‘elevator pitch’ prepared should you fall in a situation where you are asked: ‘what is your business?’
For example, imagine meeting someone from your target market on the train or someone who can push your business into further success. You’re suddenly confronted with a great opportunity to sell yourself and your business; it’s your time to shine and a chance to sell your services.
First impressions are vital, so how do you describe everything you do without losing the attention of your listener?
Consider using the traditional ‘5 W’s’ when someone asks you to explain your business. For example, you may wish to use the following questions as a template to begin drafting your 60 second ‘pitch’:
Who are you? – Introduce yourself and the name of your business, who is your target market?
Why does your business exist? Does it provide a solution to a problem, convenience or an opportunity? Or does it fulfil a gap in the market?
Where have you set up your business?
When did you set up your business? When are your services available?
What service(s) do you offer? – Summarise your business in one sentence e.g. I offer bespoke pre-natal swimming lessons to ‘soon to be’ mothers.
Don’t forget – practice makes perfect! Keep practising your pitch to a point where it is conveyed naturally and with poise.
Tips: • Hook them in by opening your pitch with a question or statement
• Eliminate jargon
• Be passionate
• Provide the listener with a unique selling point
• Avoid repetition
• Speak with confidence and clarity
• Keep sentences short and concise
• Invite the listener to engage in the conversation; probe questions
• Give them your business card
• Tailor your pitch to alternative audiences and various desired outcomes.
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Difficulties in recruiting trained swimming teachers are creating widespread problems for many swim schools across the UK – and this is heavily impacting the opportunity for children to learn how to swim, our recent survey found.
The 2015 Industry Swimming Teachers Recruitment Survey found that almost three-quarters (72%) of swim schools in UK have a waiting list for lesson spaces, while just over 81% said they could not find appropriately qualified swimming teaching staff to meet this demand.
In five regions – London, North East, East Anglia, Wales and the North – every swim school owner that responded to the STA survey said it could not find the right recruits, despite actively looking for teachers to meet the demand for swim classes.
Kayle Burgham, STA’s Technical Manager for Aquatics, said recruitment is a widespread problem and this issue is further compounded by the fact that many swim schools already find it difficult to cope with the increased demand for lessons because of pool time availability and a limited number of pools.
“We undertook this survey to understand how widespread of an issue swimming teacher recruitment is in the UK and to understand what the main challenges are and the impact on swim schools and swimming. What we have found is very concerning,” she said.
“When you consider that half of 11-year-olds cannot swim 25 metres by the time they leave primary school - something that the Government insists they should be able to do - the fact that we have long waiting lists, not enough qualified swim teachers, and fewer pools is a potential recipe for disaster.”
A lack of qualified swimming teachers is impacting on the opportunity for youngsters to learn how to swim
16 Technical
“Swimming is the only activity that can save a person’s life, so much more needs to be done to address these serious recruitment issues. As an educational charity dedicated to saving lives, we are consulting with the industry to identify a positive and practical solution.”
Top 5 reasons for poor swimming teachers recruitment
1 452
3
Not enough full-time permanent posts
Not enough full-time permanent posts
Not enough full-time permanent postsShortage of local courses
Inconsistent hours0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
89% 71% 93% 73% 90% 80% 100% 100% 86% 100%
17 Technical
A total of 229 swim schools, which between them teach more than 331,000 children and adults every week responded to the STA survey.
One respondent said: “I have been teaching for 40 years and this is the worst I have seen on children’s ability to swim.”
STA’s findings come in the wake of research by the Leisure Database Company, whose 2015 State of the UK Swimming Industry Report revealed that more than double the number of swimming pools have closed in the last 12 months as have opened, demonstrating a decline for the third year running. It found that there are 3,265 swimming pool s in the UK, down 22 from 2014.
See the full results at www.sta.co.uk
Another commented: “Candidates do not see swimming teaching as a full-time profession, only a part-time add-on.”
One teacher raised concerns about the lack of swimming lessons as part of a child’s mainstream, education: “Although mandatory physical education remains ‘only’ a foundation subject within the new National Curriculum and although swimming is compulsory, this is not reflected in many schools or by central government.”
The main findings were:
66% said they were looking to recruit swimming teachers to meet demand
71% said difficulty in finding appropriate staff was affecting their business growth plans
63% said they were prepared to invest in training unqualified staff
69% said lack of staff and increased waiting lists meant it was more difficult for people to learn to swim
66% 63% 71% 69%
STA’s Response to the surveyIn light of the results of the recruitment survey, STA is responding positively by piloting a Swimming Teacher Apprentice Course in 2016.
STA will provide a STA Award in Swimming Teacher course at a discounted rate; on completion of this course candidates will be placed in a local STA swim school to receive training, mentoring and most crucially - as identified in the survey - practical experience with a swimming teacher.
The candidates will be expected to assist with lessons before taking a small group of learners, and then an entire class. Once they have completed their placement, the swim school then has the opportunity to offer the candidate paid work, whether it is part time regular hours or cover work - the swim school has no obligation to offer the candidate hours on completion of the placement.
Kaylë Burgham, STA’s Technical Manager for Aquatics, says:
“We are hoping by running a proactive scheme like this, swim schools have the potential to recruit a newly qualified swimming teacher who they have mentored and developed. For the candidate they will have received a formal qualification plus practical teaching experience, which will be invaluable for further employment.”
STA is trialling this scheme in February 2016 and is looking for swim schools or candidates to take part.
If you would like further information please do not hesitate to contact Kaylë at [email protected]
18 Technical
Interested in building your own pool?STA’s Account Manager, Grace Mallon spoke with Ben Sabin from the ‘Little Swimming Company LTD’ about his experience in building his own pool for his swim school.Why did you decide to build your own pool?
I wanted the challenge of owning my own business. With the Little Swimming Company branding and swim school in place, the only thing missing was my own pool. The flexibility of owning my own pool has allowed me to take complete control of the pool programme and expand the business further.
The opportunity to design the facility exactly how I wanted it, allowed me to tailor it to meet the needs of my business from pool design to the motion censored showers (no more wet sleeves for parents!)
Did you need planning permission?
Yes, planning permission was necessary, especially as I had changed the ‘class use’ of the unit from business to leisure. I chose to locate my site next to a popular soft play and gym to try and keep along the leisure theme.
Why is an architect important?
An architect is important to ensure the pool and changing area’s meet certain guidelines. E.g. walk way widths and floor ratings etc. You will also need a
good plumber electrician and joiner; they are expensive but if you’re building showers, plantrooms, seating areas, fire alarms, linking up plant to fuse boxes, you must invest in good tradesmen.
Why/how did you choose your pool design?
I chose the dimensions to suit my building and depth for treading water and submersion skills etc.
How do you manage the pool water 24/7?
I manage the pool using a simple dosing system that controls all areas of disinfection of the pool water. The heating for air and water is managed via a simple control panel. I then simply add 30ltrs of fresh water per bather per day for dilution!
What was the most difficult part of the build?
It was all difficult as there were equipment delays, unexpected obstacles that weren’t factored in during the planning. There was a lot think about, but working in leisure centres over the years and being a level 2 teacher for 10yrs+, I knew in my head what would work well.
How long has the process taken you?
In total the process has taken 9 months including planning the project and a 10 week build for the facility.
What are the dimensions/depth of your pool?
10m long by 5m wide. 1.2 metres deep throughout.
What do you feel are the benefits of having your own pool?
After careful calculations, building my own pool worked out more cost effective than if I was to rent my local school pool for lessons. In fact my monthly bill is 25% less than if I was renting the pool from another provider. By eliminating extortionate pool hire costs, it has allowed us to have a reasonably stable financial
Cont...
19 Technical
structure for our lessons making them more accessible to everyone.
As well as financial benefits, I am pleased that I have control of the quality and maintenance of the facilities, which is on my timescale rather than waiting unreasonable amounts of time for things to be fixed/new equipment etc.
Finally it has got to be the staff that I choose to employ, I trust my team to provide quality lessons and teach to the high standards that I strive to provide in my business.
What sessions do you intend to deliver in your pool?
Initially my intention is to deliver predominantly one to one lessons for both children and adults. This will progress to small groups and parent and baby classes in the near future.
There is scope for Aquacise, holiday crash courses, training courses, pool parties and rental to public providing there is an opportunity to expand at a later date.
Would you recommend building your own pool to others?
Yes definitely, the process took careful planning but I am extremely happy with the end product.
I would recommend you estimate three times your initial expected spend and invest in a good architect.
Location is key. I chose my unit after studying the surrounding area/businesses which include a children’s indoor play centre next door and gym within metres of the location. Additional factors such as parking availability, road accessibility and demand in the area are all vital in your application for planning approval.
I advise you plan to build in spring time, I chose summer time but with tradespeople on holiday/annual leave this slowed the build at times.
Why did you choose to work with the STA and become a Swim Star Swim School?
The International Learn to Swim Programme (ILSP) is structured towards the target ages/abilities that I intend to teach including the Starfish awards for babies.
The marketing resources available are very child friendly right from the free success trackers we received as part of the Swim Star programme, to the vibrant eye-catching certificates.
The pricing was very appealing particularly with the Swim Star benefits and discounts which are an added bonus to the already competitive pricing.
I cannot fault the customer service I have received with account/technical support available as promised, providing assistance in the early stages of my business. The convenience of dealing with one organisation has saved me time and money. The STA are able to offer products to compliment my swim school including pool plant, training courses.
Have you any additional tips or advice for others looking to set up their own swim school?
Be confident using social media. It is one of your best marketing tools for showing the facilities, we even reported our progress throughout the build helping to create hype before opening.
With the very positive feedback and reviews from happy parents, our social media has proven the most valuable tool in spreading the word that Little Swimming Company is now open for business!
To see what Ben at Little Swimming Company Ltd has achieved please visit:
Website: http://www.littleswimmingco.co.uk
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/littleswimmingco
Twitter: @lil_swim_co
20 Technical
How to integrate learners with disabilities into mainstream lessons By Lisa Smith, STA’s Senior Account ManagerIntegrating learners with a variety of needs into your lessons is desirable for many reasons, it enables all learners to interact with a diverse range of individuals and develop sensitivity, tolerance and respect for the needs of others. It promotes the social, emotional and health benefits of swimming to all individuals, regardless of ability and most importantly allows compliance with equality legislation. Below are our top tips for those wishing to integrate learners with disabilities in to their mainstream lessons.
1. Get as much information about the learner’s needs as you can
The best source of information will be the learner’s parent/carer or the learner themselves. Take time to get to know their likes, dislikes, their aims in relation to swimming and any barriers they are likely to experience when attending their swimming lesson. Depending on the condition permission may need to be sought from the learner’s GP or consultant for them to take part in aquatic activities, if this is necessary ensure it is gained before the first session. Don’t forget to consider barriers that may occur whilst your learner is accessing changing and poolside areas as well as participating in the lesson. Remember any information that you collect should be treated sensitively and kept confidential in line with relevant legislation.
On the other side of the coin, it is equally important for learners to gain as much information as
possible about the lesson venue and how the lessons operate prior to the first session so they are prepared, feel as relaxed as possible and are ready to enjoy their first lesson. Procedures vary from centre to centre but if possible: encourage the learner to visit the swimming pool with their family prior to the first lesson so they are familiar with the changing accommodation and layout of the pool; allow the learner to observe a lesson so that they can see what will happen during their first lesson; arrange a meeting with their new teacher, learners are likely to be more at ease if the teacher’s face is familiar to them on their first day.
2. Safety is paramount
It is important to liaise here with the facility management, risk assessments might need to be updated to ensure all learners are cared for safely. Those providing poolside supervision will need to be made aware of the safety arrangements for your lessons,
particularly consider, safe entries, space, any equipment being used and how your learners will be evacuated in case of an emergency. If the learner requires medication make sure the swim school policy is followed at all times. As a generic guide, medication should be easily accessible and only administrated by a parent/guardian. Remember that all learners in the group must be supervised at all times and should be given the opportunity to progress, if providing assistance for one or two learners could compromise this, then an assistant should be employed. Teachers or Assistants in the water should follow their swim school safeguarding policy and the STA Teaching in the water guidance.
3. Differentiation
Each learner should be challenged with tasks that are progressive and ultimately achievable. To ensure that this is the case, an effective swimming
Cont...
teacher should be able to plan differentiated activities that meet each learners needs. Activities could be made more accessible/more challenging by, for example using different equipment, increasing the distance or space available, giving additional time to complete activities, working as a team or working with an assistant. Evaluation and assessment is an essential part of making sure that as a teacher you have got this right- if the learner is really struggling make the task easier, if the learner is completing activities quickly and easily-make it more challenging. There’s nothing more frustrating as a learner than being asked to perform a skill that you are unable to, or conversely spending a long time focusing on a skill you can perform competently. This is often when learners become bored, switch off and disruptive behaviour ensues.
4. Patience
Each learner is an individual and progresses at their own pace. Remember, for learners with disabilities each step may need to be broken down further and need lots of practice and reassurance before moving on to the next skill. Keep the learner’s goals in mind and celebrate each success with them- no matter how small. What’s important is the learner is enjoying their lessons and becoming confident and safe in and around water.
5. Consider attending a disability swimming teacher course
Teaching learners with disabilities is extremely rewarding, so after these initial lessons many teachers find they want to work increasingly with these learners or develop their knowledge and skills further as part of their professional development. In order to teach disability lessons it is recommended that you hold a recognised disability swimming teaching qualification. STA Level 2 Award in Aquatic Teaching - People with Disabilities qualifies teachers to deliver aquatic skills to all levels and ages of learners with a disability.
21 Technical
Further information about
forthcoming courses is
available from www.sta.co.uk.
22 Technical
‘Listen to Baby’Following on from the article about the recent CPD titled ‘Swim with Love’ by the Norwegian presenter Terje Stakset in Swim & Save eZine, we asked Jo Wilson, the CPD organiser to expand on the main summary points.
Why do so many swim schools submerge babies and what are the benefits?
During the CPD there was a fruitful debate to discuss submersion benefits. It is worth noting that Terje is not against babies swimming under water if they want to. He carefully explained in the presentation and demonstrated in the pool how to ‘listen to baby’. He would first prepare baby with ‘water washes and cheek dips’ and over time, and only when baby was saying ‘he’ wanted to go under the water, would Terje allow baby to naturally have a little face dip.
In the pool Terje showed us how baby could say ‘yes’ - he wanted to have a little swim into the water from the raft and how he could enjoy swimming through a hoop. All the swims were practised with love and mindful of how baby was feeling in the pool.
Terje illustrated in detail with photos and videos of babies being forced under the water and submerged beyond their capabilities.
He explained how this causes stress and can release the hormone cortisol. He then went on to outline research that showed; that over time babies who have been exposed to high levels of the stress hormone, ‘cortisol’ are more likely to develop stress-related diseases later in life.
He reiterated this point with his statement; Submersions do not teach baby’s to swim! Why not teach them to swim on the surface from the start?
Swim with Love
Listening to baby is so important, it is wrong to assume just because he cannot talk that – he doesn’t speak. Terje made the point several times and asked the question, ‘Who are you swimming here for?’ It should be the baby! The parents must follow the baby to the pool. Listen to baby, engage with baby, create eye contact and carefully observe and watch him in the pool. He will talk to you – if you watch and listen to what he is saying?
How are you holding baby? Is it a good hold? Not above the water, not too hard or too sloppy? Terje summarised with the statement; “give the baby the hold that he needs and wants”.
Cont...
23 Technical
If he is enjoying the activity he will engage with you. There will be smiles, bright eyes and happy laughter. Can you tell when he grumpy? Is he hungry? Tired? Had he simply had enough? Is he swimming too young? Babies under three months cannot see well, they are very sensitive, their digestive systems do not run smoothly. Terje starts his lessons at three months and not before.
We ended the presentation in talking about what makes a good instructor a really great instructor. We debated progression. “Progression? Why?” Questioned Terje. Should we not decide when the baby/child is ready? Everyone must swim at their own pace. Do not let the parent or swim school decide – let the baby take the lead!
We ended a great CPD by all agreeing that we should teach from the heart and a great instructor is one who truly cares about the baby and will consistently give from the heart. “Don’t just say you are going to teach like this.. It’s not what you do, it is how you do it” was Terje’s closing statement.
Jo Wilson is the founder of Little Splashers and Swim Works, and recently celebrated the 1st anniversary of building her own pool in Rugby. In the next issue of SwimBiz, we will be talking to Jo about the build and the results 12 months on.
More than 40 swim schools attended the CPD and comments included:
I love Terje’s approach and his presentations were fab. Ali Beckman, Puddle Ducks
I love watching and listening to Terje as his teaching methods are akin to what we use at 1st Swim School. Philomena Geary
Splashbabies had an amazing day on baby swimming cpd course with Terje. Kirsty Freer
Visit Swimworks website to find
out more.www.swimworks.co.uk
24 Fun and Games
Merry
Christmas
STAnley says: ‘Ho Ho Ho, Merry Christmas!’
Kick start the holiday season by setting up a competition using this festive STAnley Santa colouring-in sheet. Don’t forget to spread the Christmas cheer by posting the entries via @STAnleytheseal or on our Facebook page ‘Swimming Teachers’ Association;’ – After all Christmas is made for sharing!
On behalf of everyone at
the STA, Merry Christmas and a Happy New
Year!
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