Swim School FAQs

Yes! All RALC instructors are licensed by AUSTSWIM, Royal Life Saving and Swim Australia and CPR certified. Our teachers all hold a qualification as Teacher of Swimming & Water Safety at a minimum. Many of our instructors also hold additional qualifications.

Bookings can be done over the phone with a credit card or in person at Ryde Aquatic Leisure Centre. Full payment is required on enrolment.

You can join at any time throughout a session with payment only needed for the remaining lessons. You do not pay for lessons that have already passed.

You will be given a swimming pass the first time you enrol which must be scanned at the turnstiles before entering. This registers your attendance. You will receive a pass for each child attending and 2 adult spectators are allowed free entry per swimmer.

Swimming Passes are your responsibility. If a Pass is lost or stolen, a $2 replacement fee applies.

We do not offer make-up lessons. If you provide us with a medical certificate for the lesson you missed we will offer a complimentary Family Pass.

If you miss 4 or more weeks due to illness or injury, please contact the Swim School so we can discuss and make appropriate arrangements. We do not provide refunds.

A 25% cancellation fee is charged to all members wishing to suspend or cancel lessons. No credits or refunds will be given if there are less than 5 lessons left in that session.

Currently enrolled students have first chance to re-enrol for the following session to secure their current lesson time or make changes. Re-enrolment for the following session begins 5 weeks before the current session ends.

An email will be sent with all re-enrolment information. Information is also displayed throughout the centre and on the RALC website. If re-enrolment and full payment is not completed before the end of session any remaining classes will be made available for others who wishes to book.

Our instructors’ Duty of Care begins only once your swimmer is placed into their class and ends when the class is complete. At the end of each lesson, no swimmer will be dismissed unless a parent is present.

The Program Pool and Ramp Areas are used exclusively for swim school at certain times of the day. Our instructors’ duty of care extends to those enrolled in lessons only during their lesson times. It does not extend to the general public as this distracts our instructors, over crowds the pool and prevents their ability to teach safely.

If you are waiting to commence your lesson, ALL children must wait on the side of the pool for instructions from their instructor. We also ask that you please consider other lessons in progress.

All lessons are overseen by a deck supervisor who helps co-ordinate our programs from out of the water on pool deck.

They are the best person to speak to about lessons and how your child is progressing throughout their classes.

They can talk to you about the lesson structure for your child’s level and the skills they need to achieve before moving to the next level.

Our instructors have a very brief window between your class and their next so it is best to find the deck supervisor or speak to reception instead.

This ensures that you receive the time required to discuss any questions you might have. Asking our instructors directly may eat into your or another child’s valuable lesson time.

Our instructors are always happy to have a chat if they are available to.

You are absolutely welcome to change times or instructors at any point throughout a session. We understand that schedules change and sometimes rearranging lessons is part of that. Please be mindful that changing times or instructors is dependent on yours or an instructor’s availability or class vacancies.

Not at all! All of our instructors understand that everyone has different skills, needs, personalities and abilities. We know it is best being matched to an instructor that meets these requirements to achieve the best outcomes for you and your family. If it’s not clicking for you or your child then it only holds your child back and we all want to see them grow!