New Families -- Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Peterborough Swim Club?
Peterborough Swim Club is a not-for-profit community organization dedicated to providing a safe, fun, friendly swimming environment for children aged 6 to 18.
We have been serving Peterborough and the surrounding area for over 85 years now.
We have non-competitive, pre-competitive, and competitive programs within our club. We also have a Masters program within our club for those 18 and over.
Much more information may be found in our Parents Manual, which is available here (https://www.ptboswimclub.com/cantsc/UserFiles/File/Parent%20Manual/parentmanual-ptboswimclub-oct-2024_072331.pdf).
My child is very interested in swimming. What does it mean to join the team?
Our first level of swimming, Swim School, is non-competitive and is dedicated to providing fitness and quality coaching to children 6 years of age and up who can already swim one length of the pool. Swim School focuses on skill development and fun. The program introduces children to all four competitive swim strokes and other swimming skills.
Swim School sessions are 10 -12 weeks in length and are typically offered 3 times during the school year. Children may join for 1 session, 2 sessions, or all 3 sessions.
In Swim School, the commitment is one lesson per week for 45 minutes.
With Swim School, there is a session fee for each 10 - 12 week session plus an annual mandatory insurance fee. The insurance fee is only paid once per year (it is not a per-session fee),
Other than the prescribed fees, there are no other family obligations when you join our club as part of Swim School.
If my child is ready to move to the next group, how do I know, and what does it mean?
Each Swim School participant receives a report card at the end of each session. This report card lets families know when it is time to move the child into a new level.
The next level after Swim School is Pre-Competitive, which is Peterborough Swim Club's first level of competitive swimming, often referred to as pre-competitive. At this level, swimmers swim 2 times per week for up to 1.5 hours. Competition is always optional, but opportunities to compete at developmental meets designed for Pre-Competitive swimmers who have never competed before are available approximately 1 to 2 times during the swim season. Pre-Competitive swimmers are allowed to take part in one of those development meets per season.
In the competitive stream after Pre-Competitive, we have AG-Devo, AG-Train, AG-Race, Junior and Senior levels, all with increasing levels of training and commitment. We train swimmers who will compete at Canadian Nationals, Olympic Trials, and internationally.
I don't know which group to join ... is my swimmer evaluated prior to registration?
Yes, absolutely. We arrange free 15-minute assessment sessions for new swimmers at the start of each Swim School block throughout the school year. Our professional coaches observe each swimmer individually and/or in very small groups and then they make a recommendation to the family.
Coaches also assess any pre-existing competitive swimmers who may be moving to our area and wish to join our club. In this way, swimmers register in the group best suited to their abilities and goals.
Swim School is non-competitive, but do you have a Recreational program too?
Yes! If your swimmer wants to keep training but has no interest in competing, we offer recreational programs that focus on fitness, not speed.
Do families have to fundraise in the competitive stream (AG-Devo through Senior)?
Yes and no.
One time per year, usually in March, we have Swim-A-Thon, which is our one mandatory fundraiser each year. All Swim-A-Thon fundraising is done online and families ask their friends and colleagues to sponsor swimmers to complete 200 lengths of a 25-meter pool as part of a large team. We combine swimmers from the competitive program and they participate in fun relays, raise money for the club and Swim Ontario, our sport's governing body, and celebrate with a pizza party afterward.
Although we hire professional swim coaches, Peterborough Swim Club is a not-for-profit that is run by volunteers, so in order to keep fees to a minimum for families, our club fundraises on an ongoing basis. This part of our fundraising effort is optional for families. All fundraising helps keep fees lower.
Will my swimmer compete in meets and are meet fees extra?
Any swimmer registered in the competitive stream will be able to attend swim meets, but competition is optional. The respective coach will determine what swim meet is suitable for your swimmer (time trial, developmental, invitational, regional) and will make a recommendation to the family. Families sign up on our website for any meets they wish to attend based on the coach's recommendation. Some swim meets have time standards that must be met in order for the athlete to compete. To facilitate payment, the club takes in a set meet fee per month depending on the group (Pre-Competitive to Senior). These fees are used to pay entry fees at the meets the swimmer attends. If the swimmer does not use these meet fees during the year, the meet fees are refunded to the family. If the swimmer competes at extra meets, extra meet fees may be owing at the end of the season. Meet fees are separate from program fees.
