City of Birmingham Swimming Club - Synchronised Swimming Section

Information for Parents

Introduction

Any parent will wish to be satisfied that their child will be safe and secure. You can of course be assured of this but the best way of putting your mind at rest is to bring your child to one of our free introductory taster sessions in Northfield at 4.30pm on Sundays and, while you watch, chat to other parents and our coaches.

A typical training session will be led by one or two qualified coaches assisted by some of our more experienced synchro swimmers (who may be working towards a coaching qualification) and a number of parent helpers. Some parents remain poolside at the training sessions but there is no obligation to do so.

Child Protection Policy

The Club supports and adheres to the Child Welfare in Swimming Procedures & Guidelines issued by the ASA. All of our coaches have are CRB checked and we have a Child Welfare Officer who should be the first point of contact if you have any concerns. For more information on this important subject please refer to our child protection page.

Equality & Diversity Policy

The Club supports and follows the ASA's Equality & Diversity Policy which is designed to promote swimming as 'sport for all' which can and should be enjoyed and made accessible to everyone. In principle we welcome disabled youngsters providing that the nature of their disability would not prejudice safe & successful participation. In practice, some physical disabilities may preclude this due to the nature of the sport but if you would like to discuss this with our coach or a committee member, please contact us. In cases where a particular disability might make participation in synchro impractical, please note that the City of Birmingham Swimming Club has a disabilities section.

What to expect

When your child first gets involved in synchro it's important that you have a good understanding of the level of commitment that will be required. First of all, while synchro is great fun, for safety reasons and to provide a good environment for learning a high level of discipline is required as well as a positive attitude to hard work. Parents can help by reinforcing this discipline and encouraging the positive attitude that is essential.

It also requires a degree of commitment from parents because of the time that you will need to devote in order to support your child as his or her training progresses. The pace at which your child progresses will depend upon their own ability, how hard they work and how frequently they attend training. However, as a guide, a child who attends nearly every session and works hard might, in the first 2 years, progress as follows:

Months 1 - 3	Learn to synchro	One 1 hour session every Sunday afternoon
Months 3 - 15	Junior synchro	1.5 hour session every Sunday afternoon 1.5 hour session every Monday evening 1.5 hour session every Tuesday evening
Months 15 onwards	Youth synchro	1.5 hour session every Sunday afternoon 1.5 hour session every Monday evening 1.5 hour session every Tuesday evening 1.5 hour session every Thursday evening 1.25 hour early morning session on Friday

Members are expected to attend most of the appropriate sessions. As competitions approach and routines are being developed and practised, attending rehearsals is essential so as not to let down other members of the team or disadvantage your child's chances of success.

For full details of training session times and locations please refer to our training session page.