This course develops your knowledge, skills and abilities as an assistant swimming teacher. It will enable you to actively support a qualified swimming teacher in the delivery of a planned learn to swim session.

Training format

This course is split into two halves:

1. Theory – This will be delivered online through interactive e-learning.
2. Practical – This will start with two zoom webinars to cover some practical topics and your venue orientation. You will then go on to do one, half-day practical session at the pool and have a final webinar with your tutor.

Online theory

The specialist e-learning is split into bite-sized pieces, so you don’t have to do it all in one go. This means you can work through the course online at home, at your own pace. There are interactive activities which will check your understanding as you work through the content and help you a gauge your progress. At the end, there is a short quiz which you will need to pass so you can move on to the next step of your training.

Practical sessions

Once you have completed your theoretical training you will then be able to book on to your practical session which will include more course content and your practical session and assessment at the pool.

Due to current Covid-19 guidelines and to ensure everyone’s safety, we will be keeping the amount of time you spend at the pool to a minimum so these practical sessions will consist of:

• Two Zoom Webinars
  • During these sessions, the tutor will cover the last of your practical topics, a venue orientation and planning for your assessment.
• One, half-day practical assessment session at the pool
  • This will consist of a meet and greet, preparation, assisting at least two 30-minute swimming lessons, evaluation and feedback.
• There will then be a final webinar where you will receive one to one feedback from your tutor.

We run courses at leisure centres across England so you can be assured you will never have to travel far to complete your qualification.

Course content

You will learn about:

• The legal aspects of assisting in swimming lessons
• The responsibilities of a Swimming Assistant
• The swimming pathway, fundamental movement, core aquatic skills and component parts of strokes
• Scientific principles of swimming
• What makes up a lesson plan, equipment and communications skills
• How to identify anxiety and use of motivational techniques
• The type of assistance you can provide

Download the full SEQ Level 1 Swimming Assistant (Teaching) specification.

This qualification has been endorsed by CIMSPA as meeting the requirements of the assistant swimming teacher professional standard.

Prerequisites

You must be at least 16 years of age. There are no formal entry requirements for this qualification and you do not need any previous experience of teaching.

Job prospects

With many pools on the lookout for new staff, job prospects are good. Pay starts at £6–£10 an hour. For a full breakdown of average hourly rates see our salary checker.

For current employment openings, you can also look at our jobs section.