Q&A with Trevor from Cridders Swim School

Cridders Swim School has been a trusted part of the community since 2001, offering swimming lessons with heart, purpose and a deep understanding of what families need. Founded by Trevor and Maxine, the school was created to support working parents who struggled to find evening swim lessons for their children. Over the years, Cridders has grown into a welcoming and inclusive space where children of all abilities can learn, thrive and enjoy the water.

In this Q&A, Trevor shares the story behind the school, its values and the impact it continues to make.

How long has your swim school been established, and what’s the story behind starting it?

We started the day after 9/11 Wednesday, 12 September 2001. Thirty people had signed up, but only seven turned up. We started the swim school for working parents who couldn’t get evening swimming lessons for their children. Maxine and I were both working parents, and we felt we had missed out on watching our children learn to swim because most lessons were during the day or early evening.

What age range do you cater for, and which disciplines do you offer?

We currently start Learn to Swim at age 3, and finish SwimFit when swimmers reach 16 years old.

How many days a week do you offer lessons, and are they group or one-to-one sessions?

We offer lessons six days a week, and all sessions are group-based. We don’t offer one-to-one lessons.

What’s one of your favourite themes to use in lesson planning?

All the teachers enjoy Drowning Prevention Week and the lead-up to it. Activities like ‘floating after falling’ are always a hit. We usually dedicate a whole month to themed lessons around water safety. When it comes to strokes, butterfly kicking is a favourite (the kids find it fun) and the parents get really excited watching them.

How do you track progress and keep parents or students updated?

We use the Morsolutions Swimsoft programme. Parents receive progress reports approximately every 12 weeks in PDF format. They can also access their portal to track how their child is doing. Teachers continually mark outcomes to keep everything up to date.

Can you share your best testimonial from the last six months?

One that really stood out was from Anwar, whose daughter Aisha has special needs. No one else would help their family, but they travelled 40 minutes every Saturday to come to us. By the end of her time with us, Aisha was able to be part of mainstream lessons. Anwar was so appreciative.

“I would like to sincerely thank you, Ben, and the entire team for the incredible support and dedication you have shown. The girls have truly enjoyed their lessons and have gained so much from the experience, for which I am deeply grateful.” – Anwar

Where would you like to see growth in your swim school over the next 12 months?

I’d like to develop our Aquatots programme for children aged 2+. It was shelved due to Covid-19 and staffing issues. I also want to expand the SwimFit programme into a multi-aqua session that includes other aquatic activities. We trialled this 15 years ago, but the costs were prohibitive.

Do you currently influence swimming and water safety in your community? If so, how?

We run an annual safety month around June. We use social media to post links to RLSS and encourage parents to share them. One year, I held educational presentations for parents at our local school and I hope to do the same again this year. Watch this space!

What are three top tips you’d share with someone starting their own swim school?

• Become a member of Swim England.
• Have long-term, medium-term, and short-term plans. (Failure to plan is planning to fail.)
• Make sure your teachers and staff share your philosophy.

Alternative tips:

• Be absolutely sure of what you’re doing.
• Have absolute patience.

What’s been the most valuable aspect of working with Swim England for you and your swim school?

The support available is the best it’s ever been. I no longer feel like I’m alone trying to keep the show on the road.

👉 Find out more about becoming a Swim School Member here