Courses & Workshops
Beyond everyday swimming, our courses and workshops offer unique chances to learn, achieve and celebrate progress. Whether it’s an intensive crash course, earning your next distance badge, or training as a lifeguard, there’s a challenge here waiting for you.
February 2026 Courses & Workshops
SwimFit (ages 8+)
Monday 16 February - Friday 20 February 2026
10am-10:45am
1 x 45-minute swimming class every day for 5 days aimed at children looking to improve their fitness and technique in the swimming pool. Perfect for children who may already swim within the St Margaret’s Swim Squad. Children must be able to swim 25m lengths competently.
Diving & Turns Workshop (ages 8+)
Tuesday 17 February and Thursday 19 February 2026
11am-12pm
This workshop teaches children the skills to be able to safely dive into deep water and how to perform the correct turns at the end of a length. Children must be able to swim 25 metre lengths competently without goggles
Distance Badge Day (ages 3+)
Monday 16 February 2026
11am-12pm
Achieve a Swim England certificate and badge for each distance achieved. This is a drop-in session from 11am-12pm, but pre-booking is required.
Rookie Lifeguard Bronze Award (ages 8-12)
Monday 16 February - Thursday 19 February 2026
This programme is delivered through fun, engaging activities that teach children how to keep themselves and others safe, in and around water. This is a great course to complete alongside current swimming lessons to enhance water safety skills. Children must be able to swim 25m competently without goggles.
Stroke Specific Workshops: Front Crawl & Backstroke
Wednesday 18 February 2026
These sessions are perfect for swimmers looking to improve and perfect their technique on specific strokes. Children should be swimming in Stage 3 or above to be able to attend these courses.
Stroke Specific Workshops: Butterfly and Breaststroke
Friday 20 February 2026
These sessions are perfect for swimmers looking to improve and perfect their technique on specific strokes. Children should be swimming in Stage 3 or above to be able to attend these courses.
3+ Crash Courses
Run during the school holidays, this is a great way to introduce your child to swimming lessons, improve technique and learn new skills.
Distance Badge Day
These sessions give children the opportunity to achieve the ASA Rainbow Distance Awards. Badges and certificates will be awarded upon completion of chosen distance. It is recommended that parents/guardians speak to their child’s swimming teacher prior to registering to be sure of the distance they are capable of achieving. Available for 5m (with armbands), 5m, 10m, 25m, 50m, 100m, 200m, 400m.
NPLQ
The RLSS National Pool Lifeguard Qualification (NPLQ) is the most awarded lifeguard qualification in the UK and Ireland that complies with industry guidance. Generally, the NPLQ is a recruitment requirement for a number of jobs from pool lifeguard to general manager within the leisure industry.
Candidates must be at least 16 years old; be able to swim 100 metres on front and back; be able to swim 50 metres in less than 1 minute; be able to retrieve an object from the deepest part of the pool.
Rookie Lifeguard
Available for children aged 8+, the Rookie Lifeguard programme teaches children important water safety skills, personal survival and rescue techniques through fun, engaging activities. Starting with Stage 1 of the Bronze Award and progressing through to Stage 3 of the Gold Award, Rookie Lifeguard begins at an ability level suitable for swimmers who are able to swim 25 metres competently without goggles.