Sensory swimming
What is sensory swimming?
You take pare in fun sensory swimming lessons at Waterside Pool. A parent or carer must accompany their child in the pool for the duration of the lesson.
Ages: 4 to 12 years
Day: Saturday
Time: 8.30am to 9am and 11.30am to 12 noon, casual session on Saturdays at 12noon
Address: Waterside Pool, Esplanade, Ryde, PO33 1LE
Price: £4 (must be booked in blocks of six)
Contact: Jeannie Hunnybun
Telephone: 01983 563656
Email: enquiries@watersidepool.co.uk
Provider: Waterside Pool
Website: www.watersidepool.co.uk
Date of inspection
29 March 2025
Overall rating - 2 stars
Report Summary
Fun and enjoyment – 3 stars
There were a range of fun accessories to use including floats and an allocated swim teacher on hand to support them with their parents. They were able to choose what they did in the session and a couple of them particularly enjoyed practicing jumping and diving into the deep end. They all said that the staff were friendly and helpful and appreciated having a longer session in the pool.
All of the inspectors said that they enjoyed swimming and they would like to do this activity again with their parents.
Safety and surroundings – 1 star
One of the young inspectors said that there was no safety advice given and they did not know what they were allowed to do and not allowed to do in the session.
All of the young inspectors commented on the changing room facilities. They was not happy that the female changing room was closed and another young inspector said that the male changing room was not clean and had a lot of graffiti over the walls and the cubicle locks were not very secure.
Accessibility – 3 stars
The session is fully inclusive and has hoist facilities to be able to get children in and out of the water if needed. The venue is easy to find with adequate parking. The Young Inspectors felt the session time was much better and they liked that it was less noisy than the earlier session and there was less people in the pool. One of the young inspectors said that it would be nice to have a session like this available after school too. The price was considered good value for a parent/carer and a child to go swimming together.
Young inspector lead feedback
One of the young inspectors aged 10 said:
“It was very fun and the staff were really helpful”
Suggested improvements
A safety and session briefing to be included at the start of the session so that everyone knows the rules and expectations of the sessions as well as safety advice in and around the pool.
What a parent said
I thought the staff were quite helpful it probably would've helped to know a little bit beforehand to prepare him if it was his first time and was more nervous, as it is he is quite confident, but some others may want to know what happens beforehand, how many other people are in there, the sound levels to expect etc. I was surprised how many adults were sat around the edge when we first went in.
What the provider said
We do not agree with the safety and surrounding section of the assessment, as our sessions are run in a very safe manner - We teach nearly 1,000 children to swim per week…. However we do take on board the feedback.