Swim school founded by GB athlete announces expansion into South Tyneside
A swim school setup by a Team GB athlete has announced it will start sessions in South Tyneside.
A swim school founded by a North East former professional athlete has launched after expanding into South Shields.
Swim City, which was initially set up in Sunderland before opening sessions in Birtley, Gateshead, is the brainchild of Jonny Carlisle and his sister, Stacey.
Jonny was one of the UK’s top swimmers before his career came to an end in 2016.
Meanwhile, the company turned into a bigger family project when their sister Abigail also got involved as a teacher. She has since gone on to be named as Swim Teacher of the Year last year by Swim England.
With sessions in South Tyneside getting underway in September, the latest expansion will see lessons take place in Harton Academy.
“Our initial talks with the school were really good” says Johnny, who was raised in Sunderland before moving to the GB Performance Centre in Bath.
“Their idea around what they wanted us to do was matched. We’re doing a free lesson a week for any kids who don’t have swimming in their curriculum.
“We offer the polar opposite to the standard Council lessons” he explains.
“We have six kids in a class and two teachers. It’s the lowest ratio in the country for group lessons. Our philosophy is mini one-to-ones within a group environment.”
In addition to host sites, pupils at local primary schools already take part in sessions in Sunderland and Gateshead, with one primary education setting already agreeing to bring students to Harton for their swimming lessons from the start of the next academic year.
“We’re trying to speak to primary schools which are close to Harton where it’ll make it easier for kids who are coming to Harton Academy so they have that pathway” adds Jonny.
Adult lessons will also be available for all abilities. Anyone interested in signing up for sessions from September can find out more through the Swim City website.
“They’re going to be starting on Saturday mornings. We’ll see how that gets on but we also do one-to-ones” he continues.
South Tyneside will add to the estimated 2,000 people who already benefit from free lessons by the company.