FAQ’s

Bookings can be made by sending an email here.

Term-time lessons are invoiced in advance.

For re-enrolling families, a £50 deposit is required to secure your child’s place for the following term. This deposit is deducted from your total term fees, and you will then be invoiced for the remaining balance.

Term fees can be paid in full or in two instalments, with payment dates confirmed on your invoice.

New families joining our term-time lessons are also charged a one-off £25 starter fee per family.

If a swimmer joins partway through a term, their fees will be calculated on a pro-rata basis, so you will only be charged for the remaining lessons.

Holiday Courses

Holiday courses are booked and paid for separately. Payment is required in full at the time of booking to secure your swimmer’s place. Places are limited and cannot be reserved without payment.

All payments are made by BACS (bank transfer). Payment details will be provided on your invoice or booking confirmation. We do not accept credit card payments.

Due to the amount of time the team spend in the water, we are normally uncontactable by phone.

The fastest way to get hold of us is via email, or you can message us via social media, or through Whatsapp.

We run three terms per year, following the local school timetables, and the terms vary between 12-16 weeks.

Our term time classes do run through half term holidays but not during the Easter, Summer and Christmas school holidays. Nor do we run classes on public holidays.

During holiday periods we usually run intensive 2-5 day holiday courses. Our full timetable for the year can be found here.

You certainly can, it just depends on how close they are in swimming abilities. For example, we wouldn’t advise a 2:1 with a stage 1 and a stage 5 swimmer – but if they are in stage 1 and stage 2 that should be fine.

Our staff are all incredibly experienced with working with nervous swimmers. The pool can be a daunting place and very understandably it can be a scary experience! Due to our class sizes being so small, teachers can take the time to put swimmers at ease, build a relationship of trust and ensure your swimmer feels safe and secure. We also have a number of tricks up our sleeves including plenty of fun toys which act as a great distraction!

Unfortunately, we’re unable to offer make-up lessons for occasional absences due to short term illness or personal commitments. Our instructors plan and tailor each session specifically for the swimmers in their class, so offering temporary drop-in spaces can disrupt the consistency and structure of the lessons.

If you know your swimmer is going to miss a lesson, you’re very welcome to send us a quick email so we can let their instructor know, although there’s no obligation to do so.

If you’d like your swimmer to have some additional pool time, our holiday intensive courses are a great opportunity to build confidence, practise skills and make further progress.

Yes, we schedule our preschool lessons at the same time as our adult and child lessons, making it easy for families with two young children to enjoy their swimming lessons together.

Take a look here to find a description of each of the stages.

Alternatively, you are welcome to drop us an email with a description of your swimmer’s ability and we are happy to advise.

We recommend goggles for swimmers of pre-school age and above. They can help children feel more comfortable putting their face in the water and are a useful part of learning to swim confidently.

Swimmers with long hair should have it securely tied back, and we strongly recommend wearing a swimming hat. This helps keep hair away from the face and goggles, makes swimming more comfortable and also helps to protect the pool’s filtration system.

Please note: At Winchester College, swimming hats are mandatory for all swimmers unless there is a medical exemption.

All of our term-time swimmers receive a free Standen Swim Academy swimming hat!

Can I bring my buggy or pram poolside?

You’re very welcome to bring younger siblings poolside in a car seat. However, for safety and to keep the poolside area clear, buggies and prams cannot be brought onto poolside and unfortunately we do not have suitable storage areas for them at our venues.

We therefore recommend leaving buggies and prams in your vehicle wherever possible.

All of our locations have nearby parking to help make getting to and from lessons as easy as possible.

Ample free parking is available right outside all of our venues.

As these are private properties, please park responsibly and respectfully.

Please arrive 5–10 minutes before your session, wearing your swimsuit under your clothes so you’re ready to swim!

Our Front of House team will welcome you at the entrance.

After your class, you're welcome to take a quick shower and use the changing facilities. To keep everything running smoothly, our sessions are staggered every 10 minutes.

All our facilities have weekly pool tests to ensure they are safe and clean to swim in.

Three Oaks uses ultra violet light technology to keep the pool water clean.

Ultraviolet (UV) Pool Systems harness the power of ultraviolet light to lower chemical levels, eliminate chlorine by-products, and to make pools safer, healthy, and easier to manage.

UV lights are installed inline just after the filtration system. The UV light alters and disrupts the DNA or RNA of targeted organisms such as algae, bacteria, viruses, cysts and protozoa. The highly concentrated electromagnetic energy also destroys organic matter, eliminating the formation of dangerous chlorine by-products called chloramines that commonly lead to red stinging eyes, skin irritations, asthma and allergies.

Very low levels of chlorine are still required in the pool to take care of bacteria in the water that’s slower to reach the filter, but it’s a lot less than if chemicals were the primary cleaning method. Chlorine levels are often maintained at levels as low as the level found in drinking water. However, there are occasions, for example if a child is sick in the pool, when it becomes necessary to add additional chlorine and the chlorine levels will for a short period, be higher than usual.

Babies need a disposable swimming nappy covered with an outer neoprene swimming nappy. We operate a Double Nappy System which consists of an aqua nappy (such as Huggies) that can be bought in most supermarkets/chemists, and over the top of the aqua nappy goes a Happy Nappy. The Happy Nappy can be bought on-line at Amazon or Splash About (or Jo Jo Maman Bebe and Boots).

For health and safety, all children under 3 must wear a double-nappy system, even if they are potty trained. Without it, your child won't be able to join the lesson, and refunds cannot be provided. A single pool accident can force a closure for anywhere from an hour to 14 days, severely disrupting classes for everyone. Thank you for your cooperation!

We aim to keep our water at a warm 29°C minimum, so extra layers usually aren't necessary.

However, if your little one gets cold easily, you’re welcome to dress them in a rash vest or wetsuit. Don’t forget, our baby and toddler sessions require an adult in the water, so remember to pack a swimsuit for yourself, too! You're also welcome to wear a rash vest, though our pools are warm enough that we doubt you'll need one.

Not necessarily. Most of the pool is at the right depth for an adult to stand comfortably in waist or shoulder deep water depending on individual height.

You will need to hold your child during class and walk carefully around the pool during activity. All of our teachers are able to help and guide any non-swimmers throughout the class and will ensure a relaxing and comfortable experience for anyone who may be apprehensive.

At Three Oaks there are two showers, group changing rooms and individual changing cubicles available.

At Winchester College there are plenty of showers, group changing rooms and individual changing cubicles.

At Twyford there are several showers, large group changing rooms and individual changing cubicles available.

All our locations have baby changing stations for little ones.

We are breastfeeding friendly at all our locations.

At Three Oaks, our poolside seating area is a comfortable and relaxing place for you to feed your baby either before or after class without any interruption.

Feel free to drop us a quick email if you'll be missing class. It isn't strictly necessary, as lessons will go ahead as normal, but we always appreciate the heads-up!