Case Study 1- Be a Better Swimmer I don t teach swimming, I teach people how to be happier in the water
Key Points Positives General consensus that the initiative is a good idea Positive results in terms of improvements in swimming for all participants spoken to Enthusiastic teachers/coaches Points for further consideration: -Diagnosis workshop, opposed to Pool walker -Target special group inc GP Referral -Offer incentives -The Social Element -Definition of who it is aimed at and where it sits on the adult L2S framework Negatives Ineffective marketing and promotion Class sizes often small and numbers mainly on the decline No clarity in terms of who it is for and what type of swimmer it is aimed at -Up skilling of staff, education of all staff inc gym instructors and reception staff -Targeted marketing and promotion -Swimfit -Swim4Health -CPD
Introduction Analysis was divided across two leisure providers, Serco and DC Leisure. These providers each received supporting funding from Kelloggs. Serco centres introduced Be a Better Swimmer as free, structured sessions for adults wanting to improve their swimming DC Leisure centres offered their own take on Be a Better Swimmer which was a pool walker service, this was offered at no extra charge and was designed to be a hints and tips service to pool users The sessions were available to all swimmers including complete beginners, improvers as well as swimmers viewed as competent who wished to improve certain aspects of their swimming Focus groups, interviews and observations were conducted with participants, swimming teachers/coaches, swimming co-ordinators and centre managers
Aim Evaluate current Be a Better Swimmer projects to ascertain generic successes and failures of the Be a Better Swimmer concept and see if these are universal or isolated To highlight if the sessions were worthwhile and if improvements could be more widely offered To find out how best to market the Be a Better Swimmer initiative Through deliverance of this initiative, questions regarding Swimfit, a CPD for teachers and staff as well as an adult framework for teaching swimming will arise and can be investigated
Promotion and Marketing Serco centres used their customer information on their database and text, phoned or emailed them to see if they wanted to attend the sessions Serco also put posters up in their centres and spread the message through word of mouth A group had also been introduced to the scheme through a GP referral system Reception staff need to have an understanding of what they are offering Needs to be clear what is actually on offer- advertised as improver sessions but there were a lot of beginners that attended, slower progression of the group DC Centres had a generic poster that was up in their centres advertising the scheme Certain advocates of the scheme passed on the message through word of mouth, certain centres were in close knit communities where word of mouth was a key promotional tool T-Shirts indicating they were instructors (not visible enough) Poster up at the end of the lane Extra marketing around poolside (banners) Use of the notice boards in the centre
Motivations to learn and Barriers to sign up Motivations Get fit or fitter Improve health Learn a new skill Social aspect Improve water confidence Improve technique and ability to swim for longer Barriers Timing of lessons Personal circumstance (childcare etc) Transport Unfriendly reception area Initial reservations (inc confidence) Not sure it is for them People don t want to be interfered with What s the catch?
Motivations to continue and barriers to continue attending the sessions Motivations Reaching a goal Maintenance of fitness and health Become a habit and part of life Continued weight loss Love of swimming Continued improvement Barriers Timing of lessons End of learning experience (exit routes) Personal circumstances Lessons are originally free, lack of financial buy-in leads to reduced participation (no ties) Price- start to incur a cost after receiving them for free
Teacher The teaching/coaching of the sessions is of high importance in terms of retention of swimmers and continued participation. A good teacher will lead to a positive experience and can really influence someone for better or worse Key findings: Generally very positive feedback regarding teaching Teachers allowed participants to progress at own rate Catered well for a range of abilities/goals/needs From teachers: Need a CPD for teaching adults Enjoyed teaching the sessions Still need a fun element/ strike up a rapport Friendly, bubbly and approachable Need to be pro active at selling swimming Promote a gym and fitness culture They see the initiative as a good idea but it has its problems
Structure and feedback Structure Down to the instructor how they wanted to structure it 45 mins-1 hr First sessions assess the needs of the participants, their ability as well as goals Confidence building Pointers, not 1:1 coaching, which at times descended into a 1:1 session, due to low numbers and needy customers One session attracted a group of triathletes Feedback It is important for the teachers to use both summative and formative styles evaluation Evening sessions more popular than daytime One centre has its own aquatic champion Cross selling is important Feedback generally happened subtly throughout the session
Participation and ability Participation Ability A few participants bought a membership as a result of the sessions 3+ usage per week to warrant a membership Most swam out of session time as well All had gone up a level in ability as a result of the sessions All spoken to wanted to continue Be a Better Swimmer for the long term Customers left the sessions knowing what was wrong with their stroke, how to improve and where to find more advice The terminology used in promoting the sessions mean that a range of abilities turned up to the sessions 3 types of swimmer to cater for-brand new (in need of lesson), existing swimmers that has not been for a while and has lost technique and/or confidence and existing swimmers that want to improve speed, stamina or technique (maybe a triathlete or Masters swimmer)
Conclusions Generic failures and success have been evaluated by the Informatics Team. The two different Be a Better Swimmer pilots offered were suitable for different types of swimmers. The sessions that Serco offered were very similar to existing swimming lessons- with an added meet and greet session that worked quite well to stimulate interest The need to sign up to (and commit to) a block of swimming lessons led to a decrease in numbers. DC offered the pool walker service which was successful in part but failed to get the numbers because of lack of promotion. In terms of Be a Better Swimmer, both concepts worked but an alternative to this would be a diagnosis workshop or skills and technique workshop where participants could get the help they require. The structured lessons are better for people either learning to swim or a participant who needs more 1:1 advice, whereas the pool walker is more suited to someone who wants to be generally left alone to swim but may want some hints and tips- it generally caters for the more competent swimmer. In terms of generating an option that suits both swimmers, a casual swim diagnosis session (drop in and out) could be offered alongside a structured coaching session. Having a friendly instructor helps with retention and promotion through word of mouth Meet and greet for nervous or non swimmers People who took part improved their swimming abilities The main failure of the initiative was numbers due to lack of promotion and marketing Confusion over what Be a Better Swimmer actually is and what type of swimmer it is for Be a Better Swimmer caters for triathlete s. Many triathlete s weakest discipline is swimming and with the increased interest and uptake of the sport, more people are trying to improve their swimming Fits- people swimming for a challenge and females aged 30-60 as well as swimmers who are weak or haven t swam in years
Suggestions Swimfit can be incorporated into Be a Better Swimmer sessions. There is the question of what to do next? Should participants be directed towards Masters clubs or Swimfit classes? As these sessions are currently free and have no monitory value attached to them it means that they may not actually be valued. Introducing a charge and financial buy-in ties people in, but after being offered something for free will people be prepared to pay? The general consensus was to charge and extra pound on top of what was being paid already- but would this cover costs? The main floor of the initiative was lack of promotion so this would need to be assessed. Encourage financial buy-in More strategic messaging to raise profile Target specialist groups (GP Referral) Up skilling of staff Make it explicit who it is for Work out where it fits in the Adult Learn to Swim framework Explore the Triathlon link CPD for Swimfit and teaching adults