How to get discounts on membership of David Lloyd gym for swimming

[SocksFellOff]

Hi,

I wondered if anybody might know if it is possible to get discounted membership of David Lloyd Gyms in order to go swimming?

I would really like to join for several reasons:

1. Because I am home schooling my son, who is out of school due to anxiety. He can't yet swim and really needs to practise.

2. The gym has an outdoor heated swimming pool which would really help. My immune system has been really low since having covid and I have to wear an n95 mask when I go to indoor places or else I catch gastro bugs literally every time. So the outdoor heated swimming pool would really help a lot.

We do have council swimming pools but they are all either indoor or else unheated outdoor pools which I really wouldn't manage in winter.

I know there are lessons my son could go to, but he is ASD and very anxious and going to lessons without me isn't an option right now. Also he really does need time to just enjoy being in a pool in order to get really solid at swimming, without being told what to do all the time by an instructor.

I rang up the David Lloyd gym and asked about the fee to join. It turned out that if we just went swimming once a week we would be paying £50 per swim, and also a joining fee of £180, which is eyewateringly expensive.

I just wondered if anybody might know if there are discounts or things that would get us cheaper membership?

Thanks!

Find a PT at the club and befriend then - they can get you membership with either 20 or 25% discount if they refer you 👌🏻

Gastro bugs are not transmitted via aerosol, the N95 ‘helping’ is likely placebo.

Just use a local hotel indoor pool. It won’t cost you the silly David Lloyd prices.

The membership for places like David Lloyd are set up with the intention of visiting multiple times each week to get any value. Even if you were to get a discount for being student/NHS staff/friends and family of staff, it will still be extortionately expensive to visit once each week

Go more often and cost per swim will come down. (Sorry not helpful, but if you went 3x per week HD would make more progress).

Did you ask about off peak membership rates, and also no rackets? You could also ask them to waive the joining fee.

Have you applied for an EHCP if homeschooling isn't your choice but as a result of his illness?

David Lloyd suck every penny they can out of you I’m afraid (in my experience as a member for 10 years, very few and very limited perks to being a member 😩). Cheapest way to join, typically, is when they have an offer on joining fees, the monthly payments are what they are. Otherwise seek out any other pool, you should be able to use them during the day when they’re typically a lot quieter and or ask the local pools when they’re pretty much empty.

I have the exact same issue, do you live in West London? I sucked it up for a year but couldn't justify it anymore and I swam 4/5 times a week.

They don’t go far below their stated price (though you can get the joining fee waived if you know someone there).

best offer I ever had (I knew the sales guy) was free joining and he got me o. The corporate rate. Don’t think it goes any lower than that and deffo not worth it for one swim a week.

Thanks, that's really useful to know.

Sounds as though it might be cheaper to build a swimming pool in the garden. LOL

Thanks, yes we're hopefully getting an EOTAS package. I tried to put £10 a week on the personal budget for access to sports facilities, but they said that wouldn't be granted and I had to delete it. It's year 10.

You'd need to check the times that children are allowed in the outdoor pool at DL, out of school holidays, they have VERY limited access at mine

Thanks, that's good to know.

I am just looking at these and laughing at the thought. https://tinyurl.com/4fu85u2x

Can't begin to imagine how cold it must be in the unheated outdoor pool in January.

Also worth knowing that outdoor pools close in winter (at least it does at my local DL.

Our local David Lloyd virtually never allows kids in the outdoor pool just so you know - they open for families on a very few sunny days in summer

Oh gosh, that's certainly a complication.

I think you might be on to something with the hotel idea. I just found one locally that might do. I will write and ask them. Thanks!

Im gathering not, but do you have a lido near you at all? Yes it’s not as comfortable but a great deal cheaper.

Yes we have a lido just down the road, but it's very very cold. I did wonder about using it. I think I would need a wetsuit, or possibly four.

It's open right through winter, and I read the guidelines about using it last winter. It said "if at any point you feel a profound sense of contentment, get out of the water immediately" or something like that. I thought that was hiliarous.

I did actually buy my DS a wetsuit but we never dared to get into the cold water.

I have a post covid condition that means my body temperature sometimes drops to below 36C and I have the dickens of a time getting it back up if it does that.

The hotel said their pool isn't open to non-residents. I reckon I should buy the garden pool. LOL. I expect we'd get otters.

At ours we joined as a couple with NHS discount. Price for a single person was very high.
It's only worth it if you go several times a week. Ours has very few limits on kids swimming and outdoor pool open all winter (to adults).

My local one is 10am-6pm in the outdoor pool for kids.

Thanks, that's good to know. Ours has a separate outdoor kids pool, as well as an adult one, so I reckon it would always be open to kids.

I've only been going for a few months but we love it as a family. I see it as an investment in our wellbeing. However, I'd really think if you can use it enough if ds is home schooled. Is he old enough to sit in cafe whilst you do a class? Or young enough for the creche?

I was actually thinking of having the membership so he could use it, rather than so I could use it while he was parked.

So our outdoor pool is open all winter but isn't lifeguarded at all in winter - so isn't open for kids.

It's lifeguarded after-school and for a portion of weekends from late spring and to late autumn, and then all day most days for the peak summer period.

It's definitely not worth it unless you go multiple times a week though. I don't know if you can buy a guest pass occasionally if that would do it? Would still be pretty expensive though.

Ahh. I see. I think you would need to join yourself though and add him. It would work out very expensive.
Kids at our club are £40per month. So ours just come in on guest passes twice a month.

Costs at our club £200 for me and dh. It would be £80 additional for our children. Swimming lessons are £40 per month ish on top. In line with other privately run lessons locally.