To think a five-year-old shouldn't be swimming without adult supervision?

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Waiting to pay at the swimming pool when the lady in front asked for entrance for the four children with her to swim and her to watch.

"How old are the children?" asked the staff member

"10, 10, 8 and 5 - but he can swim"

"Sorry, no children under 8 allowed without adult supervision" - she pointed to the sign clearly saying this.

"But he can swim really well. Well for god's sake what'll we do now?" etc etc

She got on the phone to someone whilst I was paying then I heard her shooing them all off saying loudly "We've got to go to a different pool, this one won't let him in because he's only 5" "Where are we going?" asked some child "I don't know...." And off they went.

But AIBU to think she shouldn't want to send a five year old in to swim alone, however good he is? Maybe she thought the 10 year olds would look after him, but...

Would you?

oooo I just checked our local one - it's free here from the 1st Arpil too.

Mind still can't take DS's - 8,5 and 22 months and none of them can swim and last summer when I took DS3 in a pool he was absolutely hysterical and I had to get out of the pool with him (well hardly got him in actually) and sit on the side (he then remained hysterical at bath times for 2 weeks after that) - hey ho.

Actually, this thread brings me back to 1991, I was a poor student going for a swim on a Saturday morning when a guy in front of me asked me if he paid in for me would I look after his kids! I was so delighted not to have to pay I accepted. The kids were aged 12, 11, 5 and 3. I looked after the two youngest and I have to say I really enjoyed my couple of hours with them.
But looking back, it was so wrong! How would any of you feel if your DH took your dcs swimming, but then got a complete stranger to look after them?
I suppose, in relation to OPs post, this guy ensure adult supervision for his younger children.
But regarding leaving a 5-year-old on his own swimming, Op is NBU.

YANBU.All swining pools round here won't let under 8's swim on thier own.

I started swimming at a swimming club at 3yo. I joined all my other cousins and aunts uncles etc. By the time I was 5 I could probably swim better than the teacher who took us for "face in the water" classes at primary school.

Depends on the child. I was totally safe in the water by 5.

my youngest was swimming doggy paddle widths at between 2.5 and three due to good fortune of having pool, by five he was like a fish

i would never never never never let him swim alone

with friends from the age of nine, maybe? but still not alone

I am so glad that my two are old enough to go swimming on their own. I drop them off, go and do something useful and then pick them up again after an hour or two. They are eight and nine. Last summer we belonged to a community pool and they would swim while I read a book. Before that I'd have to go in with them. I really don't like public swimming pools at all, and I find swimming boring (I quite like lakes and rivers). But the children loved it, so I've really done my bit and taken them every week or two.

However I do remember one time when taking them to an unfamiliar pool in the days when dd was a total limpet, and ds at the age of about five went to go on the slide, found it had closed since his last turn, and then jumped into the deep end (our usual pool at the time was all one depth). First I knew was when the whistle went and the lifeguard jumped in and fished him out. So even when you are supervising stuff can happen. But really that is the lifeguard's job. They certainly weren't cross with me, just concerned that ds might have been traumatised (he wasn't - as far as he was concerned it was proof that he could swim in the deep end!).

Clearly this woman was unreasonable because no public pool is going to let a four year old swim unsupervised.