Swimmable School’s Swimming Lessons in Cape Town

The new Gardens-based teaching centre for young and old wannabe water babes

Kathryn Nurse grew up in the water. As a competitive swimmer from childhood, she made lap lanes her home. And now, she’s launched a new specialist swimming school to help young babes and beginners to feel equally comfortable in pools and ponds.

Swimmable, which Kathryn co-owns with business partner Tom Corcoran, opens on 2 December 2013 in Cape Town’s Gardens Shopping Centre. The training facility meets a large need in the Mother City for a conveniently located CBD space devoted to teaching kiddies how to swim.

And though Swimmable is still in its early stages, the co-owners ultimate aim is to provide a structured programme that supports individuals’ learning all the way through from the first months of life to adulthood.

“The idea is to tutor kids from when they’re babies right through to when they’re doing aquarobics as elderly adults,” explains Kathryn. “There should be a smooth progression from learning to swim to stroke development to fitness.”

The centre runs intensive clinics during the school holidays and also offers long-term classes for infants (from three months old), toddlers, children and beginner adults in a heated, indoor pool. And because the water is chlorine free, it’s safe on young skin and eyes and ideal for little ones with allergies, asthma or eczema.

Moms and dads can also rest assured their tiny tots are in good hands. Kathryn is chairman of the Cape Town Masters Swimming Club, and all the lessons are run by teachers trained to the standards of the international Swimming Teachers’ Association (STA).

And in as much as the school is a supportive space for the young’uns learning, it’s also an especially comfortable one for parents. Adults can relax in the adjacent waiting room, sip on coffee served up by the on-site café (it does healthy snacks too) and take advantage of the free Wi-fi while watching their kiddies splash around in the pool through a large glass window.

Needless to say, the new Swimmable is certainly an option worth considering for anyone eager to get their little lambs (or themselves) as confident in the world of water as Kathryn is.

Tip: The Swimmable centre is available for hire for kids’ birthday parties (there’s a kitchen on site and catering can be arranged) as well as for those looking to run aquarobics classes or hydrotherapy treatments from the pool.

The Bill: Group classes ring in at R90 per swimmer for a half-hour session and 30-minute private lessons can cost up to R220 per person.

Opening Hours: Monday – Friday: 8:30am – 5:30pm; Saturday: 8:30am – 1pm

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Already mastered the water and now looking to conquer the wheel? Take a peek at our overview of driving schools and lessons in Cape Town.

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