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Original poster

Paying school for swimming lessons

116 replies

ISpeakBecauseICan · 25/03/2019 23:55

We have received a letter from school advising us that swimming is on the curriculum (year 3) and the children will be having swimming lessons in the school pool in the summer. Each family must contribute £25 per child.

My 8 year old Dd has been having swimming lessons at the leisure centre since she was 4 and is a competent swimmer so I don’t really see the point of paying for the school lessons.

Also the non-swimmers in the class will receive extra swimming lessons- so effectively we will be subsidising the kids who can’t yet swim Hmm

Is it a bit cheeky to expect parents to pay for something that is on the curriculum or is that standard?

FTR the school seem to be constantly asking for money and contributions for cake sales, Christmas fair, mufti days, various charity collections, school disco, raffle tickets, special visitors... and the list goes on. Though I will probably end up sending the money in so she doesn’t feel left out.

OP posts:
Pharlapwasthebest · 26/03/2019 06:51

Btw, you should see the face of the poor kid whose mum doesn't let her swim, she was gutted every week last year when the weather was gorgeous and she was the only one not going in.

Acis · 26/03/2019 06:54

The cost can't be down to transport as some people suggest, it's a school pool.

newmumwithquestions · 26/03/2019 06:54

Personally we can afford £25 and I’d pay it. I get that for low income families it is a lot. But if you’re paying for swimming lessons you can afford it too.

Soontobe60 · 26/03/2019 06:58

Schools cannot charge for anything to do with the curriculum. They can ask for voluntary donations only. This includes swimming lessons and the associated transport costs. They must provide swimming lessons for all their children by the time they leave primary school.
PP funds cannot be used by schools to pay for this.

Paddington68 · 26/03/2019 07:00

Maybe the cost is the additional electricity to heat to pool.
I hate it when people call the school 'them' the school is trying to make ends meet in a financial crisis.
If you have the money, pay the money.

Babyornotbaby · 26/03/2019 07:00

Private school?

Graceymac99 · 26/03/2019 07:02

I live in Ireland, the costs for school swimming lessons here are €70 for 10 weeks each year. My children also have lessons outside of school. I don’t mind this so much as the extra lessons are useful, it’s just that the request is made at the start of the year when there are many other costs requested. We also purchase all books and pay school insurance costs, supplies, photocopying, skipping lessons, tennis, the list goes on.

PlainSpeakingStraightTalking · 26/03/2019 07:05

The ability to swim 25 metres is part of the curriculum, they cant charge you - voluntary yes, but compulsory? No. It could be passed off as contribution to chemicals (school own pool) , or cost of transport (coach to public pool)

ShannonRockallMalin · 26/03/2019 07:07

I used to pay towards the bus for my DCs swimming at primary school.

As an aside, does anyone know if swimming is on the curriculum at secondary level as well? My DSs school has a pool but he is now in yr 10 and has never once been swimming as part of PE.

iamthere123 · 26/03/2019 07:08

@snapesgreasyhair I presume you were going to send in a private tutor to tutor your children in the areas they were lacking? Where on earth do you think a school is going to magic up a person to tutor your children during swimming? The class teacher and at least 1 TA would be on the swimming trip and all other teachers and TAs would be doing their own jobs! Some parents are so ridiculously selfish! If you want 1:1 teaching for your little precious please home school so we don’t have to put up with your selfish attitude!

Bluntness100 · 26/03/2019 07:12

What is it you wish op? For them not to go, or for them to go for free because they Can swim?

I'm sure you don't want them to miss out, and I'm also sure you don't realistically expect them to attend and not pay and only the kids who can't swim pay, with different levels of teaching

So what is it you realistically want, other than the school to absorb the cost?

meditrina · 26/03/2019 07:13

They're no doubt saying 'must' to deter pisstakers and chancers.

Schools cannot (by law) charge for the curriculum, nor can they exclude pupils whose parents do not pay. For a curriculum activity, the school has to pick up the tab (including the transport), for ones that are not an actual part of the curriculum, the school can either pay or cancel the whole activity.

Schools may be in a very tough financial climate, but that does not mean they can break the law.

Whereareyouspot · 26/03/2019 07:14

Pay this one OP but draw back on the other constant demands.

Either just send in 50p to buy one cake for the sales or send a cheap pack of muffins.

Don’t do the discos etc.

If you can’t afford the extras then just sverve them

DebbieFiderer · 26/03/2019 07:16

They may not be allowed to charge, but that doesn't stop all schools. My kids' school has its own pool. Lessons are run in the summer term, and cost £20ish. This cost is either for the running costs of the pool or the cost of employing a qualified swimming instructor, depending on which letter you believe. It isn't compulsory, only kids who have paid can have lessons, so I have no idea how they are meeting their National Curriculum requirements for those who don't pay. Last year either of mine did lessons, one because she didn't want to and one because she is too good a swimmer and too big for the pool (which is about 10m, and doesn't even come up to her waist at the shallow end)

Fazackerley · 26/03/2019 07:16

Mine was a superb swimmer in year 4. He helped the ones who couldn't swim and he really enjoyed it . It was also good practice for getting changed by himself and getting on the coach with his mates.

Petalflowers · 26/03/2019 07:17

Fairly normal practice.

SnowdropsiUnderTrees · 26/03/2019 07:19

Perhaps think about the children who can't swim. Whose parents can't afford to give them lessons. For those who rely on the school to teach their children the lifesaving skill of swimming.
Don't take their chance away because your very lucky child can already swim.
They will differentiate the lessons so advanced swimmers are also learning, in the same way they differentiate all other subjects, so your child will still get to have some fun learning in the pool even though they are already amazing at swimming.

madeyemoodysmum · 26/03/2019 07:21

We paid too but to be fair the kids loved it. It was a like a school trip every week for them so I didn’t begrudge it.

We had one mother who refused to pay tho even tho she could afford it and went round telling everyone too. She pissed a lot of people off

Saladd0dger · 26/03/2019 07:21

Our school charges. I have challenged it as the children walk there and back, they also go during the weekly p.e lesson. They tell me it’s to pay for the instructor. I tell them it’s part of the curriculum and they aren’t allowed to charge for it. They still do. I pay it but don’t contribute to other things now as it gets to much.

BikeRunSki · 26/03/2019 07:22

When dd swam with school in Y3/4 the children who were already competent swimmers worked on their personal survival awards.

anniehm · 26/03/2019 07:24

We paid a pound a week from year 2 but only summer term as the pool was outside. The school no longer does swimming though (despite the government saying they should) because so many kids were pulled from lessons due to parents not allowing their kids to see the opposite sex in swimwear, the schools demographic has changed even since mine were there to 80% Asian. Even when my kids were there 1/4 or more girls sat out swimming.

SnapesGreasyHair · 26/03/2019 07:26

@iamthere123 - so I'm selfish for wanting what's best for my child? I don't think so. My children don't need swimming lessons, infact only a small number couldn't swim in his class.

It would have been better for everyone if only the children who couldn't swim got to go so the "instructors" could concentrate on them.

My child and the rest of the class could then concentrate on what they need to improve upon.

Our school send 4 teachers/TA per class so more than enough to leave some behind.

In regards to home tutoring, l have actually considered it for DS1 as he is struggling at school

DeloresJaneUmbridge · 26/03/2019 07:27

You’re not paying for the lessons but the transport largely.

And to the PP who sneered at teachers teaching swimming incorrectly....my experience is that swimming pools have dedicated swim teachers. The class teacher will simply be there to escort children .
Many schools can not afford to pay the transport costs and so they ask for a contribution.

TheNoodlesIncident · 26/03/2019 07:27

There's such a wide disparity between kids with swimming - we've had ds in swimming lessons for the past five years, while other children in his KS2 classes had never even been to a swimming pool before Sad We didn't get charged for the buses down to the pool so maybe the PTA paid it?

Even though my ds can swim very well, I wouldn't have not let him go with his class, irrespective of any charge - he would have been miserable at being left out (like that poor kid Pharlapwasthebest mentioned).

Shannon as far as I can see, swimming is only on primary (KS1 and 2) curriculum, not secondary.

DeloresJaneUmbridge · 26/03/2019 07:30

Snaoes your child would feel left out if only the children who couldn’t swim got to go surely. Most children love swimming and a chance to splash about.
Schools have to offer swimming during KS2. I would imagine it would cause more issues to separate the class into swimmers/non swimmers/ good swimmers/weak swimmers etc.