To hate that so many sports are so expensive?

[SwumMum]

DC had swimming lessons through a local competitive club from tiny. Almost without any real thought they've just stayed with the club, entering squads and taking part in galas and competitions. They are not in any way exceptional for their ages and whilst they enjoy it, they have no intention of competing in a more serious way.

The fees have ramped up slowly over the years, with occasional shocks such as an expensive gala or a particular piece of kit that had to be bought. We have just absorbed these costs but when we didn't have to pay through lockdowns we really noticed how much better off we were.

The club have now announced a 90% increase in membership fees that will be taken as a lump sum, plus an increase in fees per month too. This amounts to hundreds of pounds extra and we just can't pay. Along with lots of other families, we will have to leave the club and, due to a lack of local options, the kids will stop swimming.

We had a similar experience with gymnastics many years ago - the fees and kit costs were just an ever upward trend, out of all proportion to the benefit or enjoyment the kids got from it.

I work with someone who has a DD who plays tennis competitively and they fund the cost of training and competitions with a holiday home they rent out, and say there's just no way they could do it if they hadn't inherited the property when they did.

There seems to be such a financial barrier to accessing sports - there are so few pools and leisure centres where we live. No schools have really good sports provision and to pay for private clubs is prohibitive to all but the most wealthy.

AIBU to hate that for so many DC, sport is out of the question because of cost?

@NuffSaidSam

YANBU and it doesn't just impact kids, adult too. If you're on a low income so ma y sports are completely inaccessible. I don't know what the solution is though (government investment?) because obviously the coaches etc. have to live too and stuff is expensive!

Yes I think sometimes people forget for the coaches this is their job and they do need to earn a wage. I know a lot of sports have parents/ volunteers but with some sports that’s just not feasible

My DS19 has been playing rugby since he was in the minis. Yearly fees have averaged about £80. No match fees, food and drink after the game.

Rugby clubs can offer this as they usually have good facilities - i.e. a busy bar, function rooms for hire, and attract a good level of sponsorship. Plus many have generous benefactors and supporters. Very community focused which helps with all of these

@Hunderland

Yes. DS is rowing at university, kit is eye wateringly expensive

I don't understand why it's so expensive?? An all-in-one is approx £50 (but can be bought for less unless if club colours don't matter) fro Godfreys, one of the main suppliers to rowing clubs in the UK. They usually offer a bulk discount so most clubs do orders every so often to make the most of the discounts. To race, yes an all-in-one in club colours is mandatory but everything else should be optional. Obviously the longer you row (and compete) for, the more club colours kit you tend to acquire but it's really not necessary for beginners starting out.

(I'm an ex-international rower)

I often think there should be a way to oblige people who' ve made it in sport to give back to grass roots. A bit like student loans. If you've benefited from (often volunteer) training and are now making your living from it, a little bit of extra tax to pay something back and subsidise the next generation?

Mine have been to various clubs.

Ds2s judo cost £1 a week until about 18m ago (he started 10 years ago) when they put it up to £2 a week. Plus annual British Judo membership for licence & insurance is about £20. He's always had 2nd hand judogi handed down until his most recent one, and we've passed them on when he's outgrown them.

Both boys went to a running club that used to be £1 a session then changed to £49pa but no session fees - they ran twice a week for that.

Ds1 does archery. That was more expensive initially (course and equipment), but his club fees are about £120pa, which gives access to 3 times a week shooting at no additional cost (although due to covid restrictions they are limiting numbers at each session, so they probably can't go to all 3 sessions).

Ds2 also does hockey, juniors was cheapish although I can't remember exactly how much, less that £50 for the season including kit and they also had sticks to borrow.
Seniors is more expensive, £60 a season but you also have to pay match fees which are typically £7.50 a time to cover pitch hire, referee and teas (usually a proper meal in the clubhouse or a pub).

A friend's daughters do ballet, that's eye-watering.

You don't need £100 trainers and they last 500 miles. Elite runners don't do 500 miles pm.

Yes @Chasingsquirrels, a friend's daughter does dance for hundreds a month!

Yes, dance makes tennis look cheap. DD did ballet when she was 4 (lasted 1 term) the uniform was £120!

I agree OP. DD1 currently is towards the beginning of her swimming club journey. No kit needed past any old costume, goggles, and club hat (£5?), and it's £24 for 1hr/week which is £6 cheaper and double the time of council lessons. The £32/month mentioned by a PP gets you 2hrs/wk at the next stage up. However, the eldest top swimmers (swimming at national comps) are charged £87 for 9.5hrs/wk. Obviously they have comp costs on top (inc. travel/accommodation), plus have to buy the T-shirts, joggers, bags etc as well as needing 'performance' swimwear. DD1 shows promise and is enjoying it so we are going with it for now, but I'm trying not to think how much it could cost us in future...
DD2 is in a pre-development squad for gymnastics. Up 'til now it's been £30/month for an hr/wk, but she's just been offered a place in the next step up. It's better value in some ways as it's 3 x training time for 2 x cost, but that's still 60‐fucking-quid a month! Plus whereas before a cheapo leotard was fine (£15), she now needs a squad leotard (£40) and club leggings (£20) as a minimum... She's 5yo!

@NuffSaidSam the problem I have re the coaches that at the swim club we are often reminded that many of the coaches are volunteers who give their time - which is great and v kind of them, but it means it would be even more expensive if they were paid!!

Taking the responses on this thread as being widespread across the uk - wow, there's so much regional variation in costs.

Where I live - swimming lessons are £10ish per 30 mins, football is £250 annual, dance lessons are £10 per 30 mins. Very little free sport at primary school, though much better at secondary.

I actually think gymnastics is wicked. They have 100s of children in "elite" (and costly) programmes who are nothing of the sort.

I'm a swimmer. My racing cossie was £380!!

Football subs are £40 a year at our club, hence why it's the only thing mine do! Coaches are volunteers, to the PP who asked re: rugby, which explains the low/non existent costs.

Ds used to swim at our local pool. 30.min lesson a week = £46 a month. That was 7 years ago. I bet its loads more now.
He only did it to learn to swim once he was Confident in water he stopped

In my experience hockey, rugby, football and cricket tend to be fairly affordable, roughly £20 a month subs that covers training and matches the playing strip. (Obviously you have to get boots, hockey sticks, cricket bats but most have second hand kit readily available and pass things down to new starters)
HOWEVER I have a swimmer and luckily my workplace sponsor him which helps cover part of his costs. Its £70 a month fees although he does train for 13 hours a week so isn't too bad when you work it out as an hourly rate. An annual fee of £130 for membership and swim england membership for insurance purposes. Each gala is about £60 and he does at least 1 a month. Then if he qualifies for county, or regional or national galas they are on top and usually involve hotel stays as well. Then there is kit, £50 for a pair of goggles at least £100 for a racing suit.

@BeardieWeirdie

My six-year-old has recently started rugby and loves it. She’d been going for a couple of weeks and I said to the coach that I hadn’t heard anything about subs etc and what did I owe them - nothing, it’s completely free. Free shirts, free coaching and a hot dog on match days. They proudly told me that they’re a club and do it for love, they’re not a business like gymnastics.

Yeah. But... who's paying for all the kit?? This is normally done though sponsorship.

We pay £50 for cricket plus £25 club membership that’s for whole season including matches. Had to buy hardball kit but hope that’ll last next year too. It’s at an amazing club we are lucky to be close to.

Also pay £100 for football somewhere else and that includes kit and matches.

It’s interesting to see what others are paying for different sports.

@arethereanyleftatall

I'm a swimmer. My racing cossie was £380!!

Wow! What standard are you? National? Why is your cozzie so expensive?

YANBU. At the height of my DD’s gymnastics ‘career’ I was paying around £250 a month for fees plus endless money on hotels for competitions, competition fees, leotards and kit, travel, petrol to training x 5 a week, plus the financial ‘cost’ of me working less than I would otherwise have done to facilitate it as she had to have someone to take her to training and out of school early etc. Also did several training trips and comps abroad which was £££.

I don’t regret it as such, and we were very fortunate that we could afford it, and it’s given her skills for life, and she’s done pretty well, but it’s a the financial aspect is a huge barrier for many kids.

My other child does football and hockey which is much more reasonable but still not cheap!

I don't understand why it's so expensive?? An all-in-one is approx £50 (but can be bought for less unless if club colours don't matter) fro Godfreys, one of the main suppliers to rowing clubs in the UK. They usually offer a bulk discount so most clubs do orders every so often to make the most of the discounts. To race, yes an all-in-one in club colours is mandatory but everything else should be optional. Obviously the longer you row (and compete) for, the more club colours kit you tend to acquire but it's really not necessary for beginners starting out.

Yeah I row (masters) and the vast majority of my training kit is cheapo stuff bought online or from sports direct. My club 'onesie' cost about £65 and I only put that on for head races and regattas. My club subs are about £50 a month, that gets me access to all club equipment, coaching, insurance and use of the club bar and gym. Pretty good value I think.

(I'm an ex-international rower)

Dare I ask what club you are a member of?

Swimming racing suits are expensive - up to £450 and they're not meant to be warm for many races / swims.

They're technical compression suits

Swimming is an expensive sport and you don't get any funding until you get picked for national squads.

Your swimming sounds really expensive. The squad I swim with for Juniors would be £35 a month. That's for up to 4 sessions a week plus the once a year Swim England membership which is just under 30 I think. If only swimming once a week it's £24

Costs vary a lot by sport and whether its private or local authority funded. Our local council swimming lessons are £25/month (30mins a week) whereas the equivalent private lessons are £46/month.

Dance classes round here are £30/month (2hrs a week) but you have to buy endless uniforms, ballet shoes, tap shoes, jazz shoes, pompoms, batons and millions of matching accessories. Then there's the shows, the exams and so on. It ends up costing a fortune.

I live in an area of london that is classed as a socioeconomically deprived area, all extracurricular activities are beyond the means of most families here. Those children that could benefit most from these activities are not able to attend and it breaks my heart.