Please take time to read the following terms and conditions carefully. They are the basis of the contract between yourself and Swim Angels.
1.Background
1.1 You have made a booking with Swim Angels (company number: 11419498) ("we" or "us").
1.2 The booking confirmation, together with the Booking Ts&Cs, constitutes the entire agreement (the "Agreement") between us and you. If any of the details in the booking confirmation appear to be incorrect please contact us.
1.3 You hereby agree that you accept the terms of the booking confirmation together with the Booking Ts&Cs on behalf of yourself and any person you are booking on behalf of, and that all such persons shall at all times adhere to the specific terms of conduct within the venue. For the purposes of this Agreement, "you" shall include the person named on the booking confirmation and any person they are booking on behalf of.
1.4 All correspondence from us will be sent to the person named as the customer on the booking confirmation. All regular communications from us will be sent in email format and it is your responsibility to inform us of any changes to your email address.
2. Relationship with the instructor
2.1 The Instructor is a swimming teacher authorised and accredited by Swim Angels Limited to teach swimming lessons in accordance with the Swim Angels methodology.
2.2 The Instructor is the person who will be providing the Classes to you, in accordance with the terms of the Agreement.
2.3 The Instructor can be temporarily or permanently replaced during the course of lessons.
2.4 The Instructor can only be responsible for students during their Classes, and parents and/or guardians are responsible at all other times. The Class begins when the Instructor accepts charge of the student from the parent or guardian and ends when the student is returned to the designated pick-up and drop-off point at the end of the Class. Although Instructors will endeavour to hand the student back directly to the parent or guardian, the student is the full and sole responsibility of the parent or guardian when the student is returned to the designated pick-up and drop-off point at the end of the lesson. Parents and/or guardians must stay on the pool premises at all times.
2.5 In the event of a swimmer, parent, guardian, sibling or other associate: (i) refusing to obey an instruction from the Instructor or one of their staff members; (ii) behaving in an unruly manner towards the Instructor, one of their staff members or any other person; or (iii) causing damage to pool premises, or any of the furniture fixtures or equipment in those premises, the swimmer shall not be permitted to continue with the Classes. We shall then have the right to terminate the Agreement without further notice and without being required to offer any credit or refund to you and you shall not be accepted for any future course organised by the Instructor or the Agent.
2.6 We and the Instructor work together to ensure that recommended water temperatures are maintained, but in certain circumstances temperature may vary and cannot be guaranteed. Neither we nor the Instructor are liable for the pool or other facilities or any Losses or injuries suffered by you or any third party as a result of them.
3. BOOKINGS
3.1 General
(a) In the event that you wish to book onto a set course of Classes ("Course") in respect of which the Instructor has already started delivering such Classes, you may do so only if you book onto and purchase all of the remaining Classes of such Course.
(b) The agreed start date of any Class or Course which you have booked onto cannot be amended once payment has been received by us.
(c) Bookings are not confirmed until payment has been received. You will always be provided with a confirmation of your booking via email.
(d) Our invoices are VAT exempt until the company must become VAT registered. Payments do NOT include VAT and we may add VAT to our prices in the coming months (2023) as the company nears the threshold and required to become VAT registered.
(e) We are unable to give refunds, makeup lessons, credits or re-book lessons for any non-attendance. This is because we still accrue the cost of the pool and the teacher’s time.
(f) Please note classes need to be booked and paid for on a termly basis. Therefore the amount that is invoiced will vary per term depending on the number of weeks in the term.
(g) Where lessons are started once the term has begun, fees will be charged on a ‘pro rata’ basis.
(f) The Facilities are to be left in the same condition that the customer found them at the start of the lesson. Customer is fully resonsible for damages to property Equipment and/or the Facilities.
(h) We reserve the right to move students to different times, change teachers or venues if deemed necessary and in the interests of the business and will cancel/refund customer if said customer is unable to move.
(i) We reserve the right to change lane rope or pool setup for any reason without notice.
3.3 People should not swim if they have any significant illness such as ear infection, chicken pox or a very bad cold. If any person entering the water has had sickness or diarrhoea, they should not use swimming pools whilst symptomatic, or for 48 hours after symptoms have completely ceased. People diagnosed with cryptosporidiosis should not use swimming pools for 14 days after symptoms have resolved
3.4 You are fully responsible for ensuring your child (children’s lessons) are fit and healthy to attend the classes. If you or your child have any existing medical conditions you should seek advice from your doctor prior to attending the lessons. Whilst every care will be taken to ensure the health and safety of your child, Swim Angels does not accept any responsibility for any negative impact on the lessons or child’s wellbeing due to a medical condition that was or was not disclosed to us. Swim Angels also reserves the right to cancel the lessons in this case (without a refund should the medical condition not have been disclosed)
3.5 Children should not be fed for 1 hour before the lesson (45 mins for fluid/milk). No food or drink on the poolside (other than water or baby milk)
3.6 Make-Up Lessons shall not form part of the Term Package.
3.7 Payment is due in advance on the 18th of each month.
3.8 Late paying customers must pay termly (3 non consecutive/no reset warnings) or booking is cancelled.
3.9 Booking is cancelled after 72 hours of non-payment from due date 18th of each month.
3.10 It is £34.77 in advance on the 18th of each month. This is because our pool hire comes out on the 18th of each month.
3.11 It is £34.77 per month regardless of Easter and Christmas holidays where there are no lessons. . Please see about us > 'term dates' for more info.
3.12 We do not accept cash payments. We do not accept payments last minute on the day of your lesson.
3.13 Must have correct swim attire (not provided).
3.14 Group lessons are usually 6:1 ratio. We reserve the right to increase these ratios when needed for makeup lessons combine classes in emergencies etc.
3.15 It is customer’s responsibility to not check updates from us via emails or texts.
3.16 Pool will access will be denied without payment.
3.17 Must give at least four weeks notice prior to each payment date if you wish to cancel.
3.18 Badges and certificates cost £2.50. All classes finish 5 mins early on badge and certificate days. This allows us time to hand them out.
3.19 We are unable to provide swimming for children with any or pending, but not limited to, special education (SEN), spectrum, sensory needs etc, as these require specialised qualifications and one to one swimming lessons.
For health & safety, customers must disclose any, but not limited to; special education (SEN), spectrum, sensory needs etc. Withholding such information we reserve the right to cancel trial or lessons.
Unfortunately, we can only provide group swimming lessons and are unable to accommodate one to one specialised lessons.
SEN, spectrum and sensory are listed, but not limited to below:
Behavioural, emotional and social difficulties.
Autistic spectrum conditions.
Specific learning difficulties, such as dyslexia and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
Profound and multiple learning difficulties
Multi-sensory impairment
ADHD, ASD, autism, hyperactivity, down syndrome.
Requires additional support at school.
Excessive bad behaviour etc.
3.20 Must report in writing if there are any changes/updates/new diagnosis to your child's medical/health/SEN section of the booking form. Failure to do so, we reserve the right to cancel classes if there is, but not limited to, disruption, health and safety issues.. Children who are dangerous/disruptive and compromise the health & safety of a class will have their booking reviewed with parents and then removed if the dangerous behaviour continues.
3.21 We politely and professionally use three strikes rule for when student/s misbehaviour:
“Please start listening/behaving or I will need to bring your parent to speak with you. This is your first strike” We fully explain to child why they have been issued a first strike.
We call parent over to lesson location and explain to parent why student has received their second strike. Parent must speak to their child in a calm manner as to not disrupt the other children in the class. Parent is to remain at lesson location in case of third strike.
Child is given a 2 minute timeout and must be on poolside with parent. Parent can bring towel if they wish so child does not get cold. Any further strikes is straight to strike 3 and timeout increases by 1 minute. 3 minutes, 4 minutes 5 minutes etc.
3.22 Time to time, we may need to change lesson times, change teachers, venues etc as and when suits the needs of the business.
3.23 WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO CHANGE LANE ROPE ARRANGEMENT AS SUITS THE NEEDS OF THE BUSINESS.
3.24 Trial lessons dates and times may be changed if necessary. We will always email to request changes. If customer is unable to meet changes, trial lesson will be cancelled. We prioritise spaces for current customers for makeup lessons etc.
3.25 Any classes taught by the director of Swim Angels can be subject to change of teacher for: swim teacher interviews, swim teacher assessments, swim teacher training, swim teacher observations and classes are not guaranteed to be taught by director James Bennett. Subject to change as and when required for the business.
3.25 Lessons are 28 - 29 minutes long to allow for class changeover before and after each lesson.
3.26 We reserve the right to allocate spaces in the best interests of the company to maximise profits, longevity and expansion etc.
3.27 Any type of aggression shall not be tolerated and booking cancelled immediately. This includes, but not limited to: passive aggression, direct aggression, arguing, raising voices, bad attitude, verbal rudeness, forcefulness, pushiness, negative ill will etc.
3.28 We reserve the right to change of location within a reasonable distance of a 10 mile radius should it be deemed necessary to do so for any reason. Such as, but not limited to, pool closures, staff illness etc. We will endeavour to provide alternative lesson to your original as much as possible.
3.29 We reserve the right to change day and time of class should it be deemed necessary to do so for any reason. Such as, but not limited to, pool closures, staff illness, low class numbers and no longer financially viable to continue.
3.30 maximum amount of children in each class is around 6 - 8 children.
3.31 booking is not confirmed until after booking has been reviewed and approved.
3.32 We reserve the right to amend classes/change times/transfer students etc anytime if student numbers are low and it is no longer financially viable to continue the class.
3.33 If we miss a payment from customers due to our own or customer’s oversight, we reserve the right to request any monies owed or said customer/s’ booking is cancelled.
3.34 “Push parent” policy. We welcome constructive feedback from customers. However we consider the following, but not limited to, passive aggressiveness, backhanded comments, undermining, public shaming, unfair comparisons, negative comments, negative atmosphere etc to make our staff feel uncomfortable. We wouldn’t be able to allow “pushy parents” to continue with their booking if our staff do not feel comfortable in their work place.
3.35 We reserve the right to refuse service to individuals for any reason.
3.36 Harassment/nuisance in any form whether it is, but not limited to, poolside face to face, emails, telephone conversations (subtle, or aggressive) shall not be tolerated. We would advise with a warning or immediate cancellation depending on severity.
3.37 We do not guarantee nor accept any legal responsibility regarding a student passing a swim level. This not guaranteed and depends on multiple factors. We are not legally obligated to do so and do not guarantee this.
3.38 Once you have confirmed a transfer for a makeup lessons or change of venue etc, this is non refundable/reversable.
4. Rebooking
4.1 4 weeks before the end of term you will be contacted by one of our team with information regarding the next term. If you fail to make payment 1 week before the end of term your child’s place will be offered to someone else unless special arrangements have been made and confirmed via email by Swim Angels.
5. cANCELLATIONS
5.1 If within 14 days of FIRST invoice issue you inform Swim Angels Ltd. that you would like to cancel, you will receive a refund of the fees paid, as per customer cancellation rights for purchase of online services.
(a) Must give us four weeks notice prior to each payment date on recurring standing order payments if you wish to cancel. This allows us enough time to fill the space.
(b) After this period, we shall not provide any Class Credits or refunds in respect of any Classes that you are unable to attend for whatever reason.
5.2 If you fail to pay on first invoice issue, you can not book with us for three months to give other customers a chance to book the space.
5.3 If you leave without giving us the required 4 weeks notice, you can not book with us again unless you pay 4 months upfront each time on a permanent basis.
5.4 Booking cancellation due to no payment waste the company’s valuable time, money and resources. Customer may not book for 6 months (we also reserve the right permanent ban) after a booking cancellation to allow other customers a chance to book and automatically defaulted to pay termly.
5.5 If you fail to attend a trial lesson, you must pay for the next lesson. Or there is a booking cancellation.
5.7 Cancelled Lessons
(a) Classes may be cancelled at short notice where a pool is considered unfit for teaching purposes by venue management.
(b) If we are unable to provide the Class for any reason we will offer you a Class Credit. If we cannot provide a Class Credit for the enrolled student to instructor ratio, you may be offered an alternative lesson at a different ratio. If we cannot provide a Class Credit subject to availability, you will be entitled to a Financial Credit to the value of the class not provided. Such Financial Credit must be used within six (6) months of the date of cancellation or the credit will be forfeited and no refunds shall be made.
(c) We reserve the right to cancel lessons if it is no longer financially viable for them to continue for any reason.
(d) We reserve the right to cancel and refund bookings at any time for any reason.
(e) Any form of aggression, intimidation, sexual harassment to any person will not be tolerated. Booking will be cancelled without notice or refund and reported to the authorities and and where applicable.
5.8 Changes once the course has started
(a) Dependant on availability, Swim Angels can accept a maximum of one permanent lesson time change per term. If there are no alternative days/times that suit your schedule, unfortunately Swim Angels cannot be held responsible for any schedule conflicts.
5.9 Refunds
(a) Any authorised refunds are subject to a 15% fee.
(b) Refunds will take up to 5 - 10 business days to process.
5.10 Illness
(a) A Doctors note must be provided for a serious illness or operation. Only on submission of this note can allowances in the form of replacement lessons be considered.
5.11 Non potty trained children
At Swim Angels we run a double nappy policy for all children that are not potty trained. This consists of a Huggies/water proof swim nappy (found in all major supermarkets) and a “Happy Nappy” made of a neoprene, wetsuit like material. This double layer of protection ensures that if your child one has any “accidents” the damage will be contained and we will not have to cancel lessons for everyone else.
5.12 Increase of fees
(a) Swim Angels Ltd reserves the right to increase course fees.
Fees will be advertised in advance of any new course.
5.13 Schools Policy
As we have contractual arrangements to use the swimming pools as a third party provider, you are required to adhere to the club rules and policies at all times. For a copy of these please ask. General courtesy and awareness is required at all times.
5.14 Push Chairs
(a) Only strollers that can fold down are allowed into venues and must be stored in the relevant area subject to club rules. A storage area will be provided. Please ensure your stroller is folded down before you change.
5.15 Change of details
(a) You must inform us of any change in address, contact details, student health or condition and also if there is a change of Guardian / Carer. These changes and any other relevant change should be made in writing to the Bookings Administrator.
6. Code of conduct
(a) No running
(b) No eating or drinking fizzy drinks on poolside (water allowed)
(c) Please remove shoes at door or use a pair of blue overshoes
(d) Please shower before and after entering the pool to promote good hygiene
(e) Parents must drop and pick up young beginners at the shallow end of the pool (meeting point).
(f) Any belongings left in the changing rooms or cars left in the car park are left at the owner’s risk.
6.8 Data Protection
Swim Angels state it uses legal obligation as a Lawful Basis for processing personal data. The purpose is to respond to enquiries, process online orders and determine a student's swim level. We are registered under the Data Protection Act 2018 to process and store data on living individuals. A copy of our data protection act can be found on the Swim Angels website.
By sending a booking form, you are hereby agreeing to our privacy policy and allow us to process your personal data in order to add you to our waiting list.
7.MISCELLANEOUS
7.1 Limitation of Liability
(a) If you incur any Loss in connection with or arising from the performance of any of our obligations under the Agreement and our liability to you as a result thereof is established, our total aggregate liability to you under the Agreement or otherwise shall in no circumstances exceed the sum of the amount paid by you to us in respect of the tuition fees you paid us for the Classes during the preceding twelve (12) months immediately prior to the act or omission giving rise to the Loss provided that this clause will not apply to any Loss arising from death or personal injury resulting from our negligence.
(b) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Agreement we will not, except in respect of death or personal injury caused by our negligence, be liable to you by reason of any representation or implied warranty, condition or other term for any Loss (whether occasioned by our negligence or that of our employees or agents or otherwise) arising out of or in connection with any act or omission on our part relating to the supply of any Classes, products or equipment by us or the Instructor.
(c) We will not, except in respect of death or personal injury caused by our negligence, be liable to you for any Loss incurred by you as a result of the Instructor's acts or omissions relating to the supply of any Classes, products, services or equipment or otherwise and whether or not done on our instruction or otherwise.
7.2 Force Majeure
The Agreement will be suspended during any period that we believe either we and/or you are prevented or hindered from complying with our respective obligations under any part of this Agreement by any cause which we designate as force majeure including strikes, disruption to the supply chain, political unrest, financial distress, terrorism, fuel shortages, war, civil disorder, and natural disasters. If such period of suspension exceeds one hundred and eighty (180) days, then we will, upon giving written notice to you, be able to require that the Agreement is terminated.
7.3 Waiver
Neither our failure to exercise any power given to us hereunder nor to insist upon strict compliance by you with any obligation hereunder nor any custom or practice of yours or ours shall constitute any waiver of any of our rights under the Agreement. Our waiver of any particular default by you must be in writing and shall not affect or impair our rights in respect of any subsequent default of any kind by you nor shall any delay by us or omission of ours to exercise any rights arising from any of your defaults affect or impair our rights in respect of the said default or any default of any kind. Any waiver of any rights by us will also operate as a waiver by you of any equivalent rights that you may have.
7.4 Variation
If the Agreement is modified in any way, customers will be notified via email. If customer does not object, they thereby agree to the new terms and conditions.
7.5 Third Party Rights
The parties to the Agreement do not intend that any term shall be enforceable by a third party as defined in the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 (the "Act") under the provisions of the Act.
7.6 Choice of Law and Jurisdiction
The Agreement shall be governed by and construed according to English law. All disputes between us concerning the Agreement shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the High Court in London.
7.7 In line with the 1988 Copyright Act, Swim Angels Ltd reserves the right to use any or all photography or video taken by us during our underwater video analysis sessions or photo shoots for our own publicity and promotion purposes. We will always notify you if we wanted to use a any images/videos. Such images remain the sole property of Swim Angels Ltd and your agreement to these terms releases all image rights in favour of Swim Angels Ltd.