Trust's strategy delivers for swimmers

The region’s leading sports and leisure service provider is celebrating the launch of its aquatic strategy which will deliver a clear direction for aquatic provision across Fife.

Fife Sports and Leisure Trust – the region’s leading provider of sports and leisure services – has carried out a rigorous review of its aquatic offering delivering a much more consistent, structured and customer-focused approach in line with national swimming guidelines.

The strategy sets out the trust’s ambitions for the next three years and is being endorsed by Scottish Swimming, the national body for swimming. Key strategic targets are provision of safe, effective and child-friendly environments based on best practice, development opportunities for swimmers, instructors and volunteers, and, the promotion of sustainable development pathways to encourage a lifelong participation in swimming.

Fife Sports and LEisure Trust Aquatics Strategy, Scottish Swimming
Fife Sports and Leisure Trust swim instructors Scott Caldwell, Lianne Aird, Caitlin McKilligan and Lee Cunningham, aquatics co-ordinator

The trust has nine swimming pools across Fife and delivers over 800 Learn to Swim classes every week, with over 6,000 participants in the programme and over 100 instructors delivering the classes in line with Scottish Swimming guidelines.

Ed Watson, chief executive of Fife Sports and Leisure Trust, said: “The trust’s aquatic strategy is a clear demonstration of our commitment to deliver quality aquatic provision from learners to competition level swimmers – it reinforces our aim to offer affordable, accessible physical activity opportunities for all ages and abilities.

“The ability to swim competently is a vital lifesaving skill, and, we are very pleased to be working in partnership with Scottish Swimming to ensure the communities of Fife are being offered the best possible level of coaching, following the highest levels of best practice.”

Lee Cunningham, aquatics co-ordinator for Fife Sports and Leisure Trust, said: “Following a period of consultation with our customers, we have successfully rolled out a Learn to Swim programme in partnership with Scottish Swimming which sees the implementation of the new National Framework for Swimming in Scotland.

“The new programme has proved popular with families and sees classes spread more evenly throughout the year and offers free recreational swimming to participants enrolled in the scheme.

The strategy sets out a three-year vision which will not just support learners, but also develop coaches, club-level swimmers and deliver a much more customer-friendly approach which will make doing business with the trust far easier.”

Forbes Dunlop, chief excutive officer for Scottish Swimming, said: “We are delighted to be working in partnership with Fife Sport and Leisure Trust and to support the delivery of this strategy. Scottish Swimming understand the importance of quality environments in the delivery of learn to swim and club swimming programmes and look forward to continuing to work with the trust and our member clubs in Fife to achieve this.”