Want to make a splash this winter? This local pool is offering four weeks of free swimming lessons

Posted on 22 May, 2024

Dreading the idea of heading to the pool now that the warm weather is gone? A free four-week swimming program can help you and your little ones to get back into the swim of things.

We don’t blame you if the combination of cold weather and shorter days is making swimming lessons sound less than inviting – but if you’re thinking of ending your child’s (or your own) swimming lessons over winter, Stellar Canberra has a limited-time offer that will make you re-think pulling the plug.

Offering four weeks of completely free swimming lessons until Sunday 30 June, Stellar Learn to Swim wants to help inspire people to get into the water during the colder months, because according to Stellar Learn to Swim Pool Manager, Victoria Flood, learning water confidence shouldn’t stop in the winter.

And it can mean the difference between life and death.

“We find a lot of people lose their interest in swimming lessons over winter because the weather is colder and that leaves their children not fully prepared for summer because they haven’t been practicing their water safety skills,” she says.

“It’s really important to keep developing their water confidence skills not only with competitive strokes but also to keep developing their safety, their awareness and keep building that fitness and strength – because what you need in the water is very different to what you need on land.”

“It’s about making sure that if something happens or if they’re out in deep water, they’re best equipped to be safe and okay.”

But it’s not just about teaching kids. According to the Royal Life Saving National Drowning Report for 2023, last year 281 people drowned in Australian waterways and 57 per cent were over the age of 45. It’s why Stellar Learn to Swim is offering four weeks of free swimming lessons to people of all ages.

“Anyone can participate, whether they’re a baby doing their first ever class at six months old or an adult who wants to build their water safety skills and water confidence,” says Victoria.

“Lots of adults want to build up their skills, even if it’s just so they can have better technique or if it’s because they never learned how to swim and want to be safe in the water.”

Explaining that the lessons are incredibly easy to fit into your day, enrolments are now open for swimmers to attend one free 30-minute class a week (with opportunities to sign up for more sessions), where Victoria says participants will learn core swimming and survival skills.

With class sizes ranging from four to seven people, the lessons are intimate and tailored to the needs of the students. Oh, and did we mention that the pool temperature is set at a toasty 32 degrees?

“They’re smaller classes so they [the students] have more focus from the teacher, they’ve got more attention and because there’s only one pool on the pool deck, it’s not as distracting as if you went to a larger public pool. It’s very calm,” says Victoria.

Interesting in signing your child or yourself up? You’ll need to enrol for a minimum period of 12 weeks (inclusive of the four free weeks). And if you make it to the end of the free sessions and decide you want to throw in the pool towel, you can always cancel.

But with no damage to your bank account, why not dive in?

For more information and the full Terms and Conditions, visit stellarcanberra.com.au.