Swim School links
Junior Programmes
St Luke's Swim School
The St Luke's Swim School programme is designed for children and adults of all abilities, from those who have never swum to competitive swimmers. We also have a variety of teaching, lifeguard and swimming courses available throughout the year. Click here for more information.
Children's Lessons
Our lessons follow the Swim England pathway and swimmers are assessed against specific criteria to progress along the swim school. You will be able to track your child's progress online and at the front desk. Please speak to a member of the team at reception for any information on this
Lessons take place 7 days a week in our indoor pool at St Luke’s Sports Centre in Exeter and are delivered by our experienced team of qualified swim teachers and assistants.
For just £30.00 a month, children receive one 30-minute weekly lesson and a free swim membership in our indoor and outdoor pool at Cornwall House.
This now includes badges and certificates. One parent/guardian can claim a complementary PAYP membership, giving them membership rates on activities.
Lessons run continuously throughout the year with a two-week break over Christmas and New Year.
If you have queries about payment/direct debit issues within the swim school, please email sportsadmin@exeter.ac.uk.
Adult Lessons
Adults can also pay for swim lessons in the form of a block of 10 lessons at £85.00. Adult Lessons are delivered for either complete beginners or those who wish to improve their swimming ability (improvers).
From those who are nervous about the water to those wanting advanced technical tips and coached swimming sessions, all are welcome!
Our next block of Adult Lessons will be as follows:
| Adult Beginner | Sunday 13th October - Sunday 15th December | 12:00-12:30 |
| Adult Beginner | Sunday 13th October - Sunday 15th December |
12:30-13:00 |
| Adult Beginner | Wednesday 16th October - Wednesday 18th December |
19:30-20:00 |
| Adult Improvers | Sunday 13th October - Sunday 15th December | 11:30-12:00 |
| Adult Improvers | Wednesday 16th October - Wednesday 18th December | 20:00-20:30 |
To book in, please either call us on 01392 724940 or drop us an e-mail: swimminglessons@exeter.ac.uk
Bookings and enquiries
Please be aware that there are a few spaces remaining on our Ducklings waiting list! For more information on how to add your child to the waiting list for any of our stages, please contact us on 01392 724940, through email at swimminglessons@exeter.ac.uk or speak to the team on hand at reception.
We understand that you may wish to cancel your Swim School place, if so, it is a requirement that you do so in writing with 1 month notice. We need to cancel your Direct Debit and due to processing time, it usually requires one further payment. Please use this swim school cancellation form to inform us in writing of your intention to cancel your child(s) place.
Levels and structure
Please see below the criteria and structure for each level of our learn to swim programme for children:
Learn to swim programme
View the assessment criteria and how to track your child's progress.
Our lessons are taught as the Learn to Swim or Stroke Improvement.
| Level | Content | Award |
|---|---|---|
| Adult & Child | Available for children between 2-3 years old where a parent/guardian will accompany them in the water. These run on Mondays at 2-2:30 or 2:30-3pm and Thursdays at 3-3:30 or 3:30-4pm. | Discovery Duckling |
| Ducklings | This is the entry level to the swim school. You will learn how to enjoy the water and take part in structured lessons. Aimed at non-swimmers between three and five years old. This stage operates one teacher to a maximum of six students. | Duckling 1 to 4 |
| Stage 1 | Stage 1 develops basic safety awareness, the class scenario, basic movement skills and water confidence skills. Swimmers may use aids, such as arm bands, floats, etc. Stages 1 and 2 are taught together. This stage operates one teacher to a maximum of six students. | NPTS stage one |
| 7+ Learn to Swim | Beginners learn to swim classes for children aged 7 and above. These are separate from our Ducklings and Stage 1 classes as we find it works better to have similar aged children learning together. These run on Mondays at 5pm, Wednesdays at 5:30pm, Fridays at 5pm and Sundays at 10:30am. | NPTS Stage one, two & three |
| NEW! for 2024 12+ Learn to Swim |
Beginners learn to swim classes for children aged 12 and above. These lessons allow children to build their water confidence in a safe and supportive environment with children of a similar age. These lessons take place on Wednesdays at 7pm. | NPTS Stage one, two & three |
| Stage 2 | Focus on developing safe entries into the water, including jumping in, basic floating, travelling up to five metres on the front and back, and rotating the body to regain an upright position. Swimmers may use aids such as arm bands, floats, etc. Stages 1 and 2 are taught together. This stage operates one teacher to a maximum of six students. | NPTS stage two |
| Stage 3 | Developing safe entries into the water - including submersion - travelling up to 10 metres on the front and back, and progressing water safety knowledge and body rotation skills from the previous stage. Stage 3 swimmers must swim completely unaided on front & back and takes place in very deep water.. This stage operates one teacher to a maximum of six students. | NPTS stage three |
| Stage 4 | This stage develops the understanding of buoyancy through a range of skills. Also covered is refining kicking techniques for all strokes. The swimmer also has to swim 10 metres to a standard directed by the ASA. This stage operates one teacher to a maximum of seven students. | NPTS stage four |
| Stage 5 | Swimmers develop watermanship through sculling, treading water skills and body complete rotation. They also perform all strokes for a distance of 10 metres to a standard provided by Swim England. This stage operates one teacher to a maximum of seven students. | NPTS stage five |
| Stage 6 | Developing effective swimming skills - including coordinated breathing - across all strokes. Learners swim a distance of 25 metres using a stroke of their choice. Children also learn about aspects of water safety and about preparing properly for exercise. This stage operates one teacher to a maximum of eight students. | NPTS stage six |
| Stage 7 | During this stage, children develop quality stroke techniques up to 100 metres incorporating the skills they have learned, and combine them to develop a linked routine. This stage operates one teacher to a maximum of eight students. | NPTS stage seven |
Intensive Swimming Lessons
We are pleased to let you know that we will be running some Intensive Swimming Courses during the Summer Holidays! These lessons act as a great introduction to structured swimming lessons for children on our waiting list, and for children already in our Swim School wanting extra intervention.
Dates:
Week 1: Monday 5th August – Friday 9th August
Week 2: Monday 12th August – Friday 16th August
Week 3: Monday 19th – Friday 23rd August
Stages and prices for 5 x 30 minute sessions: Ducklings to Stage 5 - £31.25, 1-2-1’s - £90
Times: 09:00-11:00am
For more information, or to book a space for your child, please contact us via telephone: 01392 724940 or email: swimminglessons@exeter.ac.uk
Stage 8, 9, 10 and Rookie Lifesaving
For swimmers that have completed Stage 7 there are a couple of different options available:
Stage 8, 9, 10
The first option is to continue through to one of our Stage 8, 9, 10 classes to get an introduction to competitive swimming. We run these classes on Mondays at 18:00, Wednesdays at 18:30, Fridays at 18:00, and Saturdays at 11:00.
Rookie lifesaving
The second option, and an alternative to lane swimming, is our rookie lifesaving squad. These currently run on a Sunday at 12:00. The Rookie Lifeguard programme is the junior award scheme of the Royal Life Saving Society UK and teaches children skills in survival, rescue, life support and water safety. Once your child is aged 16, they have the option of taking the National Pool Lifeguard Qualification (NPLQ) course and becoming a fully qualified lifeguard.
For more information, please contact us on 01392 724940 or email swimminglessons@exeter.ac.uk.