Proud to be a Puddle Duck!
From Franchise owners, teachers, office teams, pool operators and of course our swimmers, we all have one thing in common…..we are PROUD to be a Puddle Duck. And we want to tell you exactly why!
Proud of our complete swimming journey
Puddle Ducks teaches children, from birth to 10 years, to swim independently, beautifully and confidently, and to love and respect the water. We teach essential life skills and water safety to over 19,000 babies, toddlers, pre-school and primary school children across the UK, every week, offering the complete swimming journey from birth to age 10.
Classes are packed full of fun - watch as your little one develops into a confident swimmer without even realising they are learning to swim! We recognise that every child is different; our expert teachers individually tailor activities to suit your child’s ability and confidence levels. We often see children achieving their 10m award before they start school.
Proud of our leading industry teaching standards
We are totally committed to delivering classes of the highest standards and the best possible value to our customers. All of our programmes have been written and developed by swimming experts and our technical team continually develop them based on the latest research, demonstrating our leading industry standards.
Puddle Ducks teachers undergo rigorous training programmes to ensure that they meet the toughest swimming teacher standards. But it’s not just about knowledge - dedication and fun are an important part of the mix. Teachers spend 300 hours completing their training, 50 hours in the classroom and the rest in the water. Our programmes and teacher training are continuously developed in the latest techniques, ensuring our teaching standards remain the highest, meaning you really are being taught by the best! We caught up with Kayleigh to find out what inspired her to Teach for Puddle Ducks.
Proud of our child-led approach
Our approach to swimming is fully child led. Your child is truly at the centre of what we do. Our teachers are especially trained to identify your little one’s own stage of development and confidence. They will then tailor the activities to suit your child, ensuring that they are happy, developing at their own pace and gaining confidence. We also believe is giving your child choice. If your little one isn’t ready to do an activity, we listen to them and adapt the activity to something they are comfortable with. We want to build their confidence, not break it by getting them to do something they’re not ready for.
Proud of our small class sizes
Our lessons are taught in specially selected pools with limited class sizes. These small class sizes mean swimmers can really get to know their teacher, and what a sense of pride your teacher feels watching a floatie progress through the programme to take those first independent swims and all of the other wonderful milestones along the way.
Jo Chandler has been teaching our baby and preschool lessons in Greater Manchester for over 6 years, and says "Being a Baby and Preschool swimming teacher is such a rewarding job! It's amazing to see my little swimmers build their confidence in the water and go from splashing their grown ups, to turning those splashing hands into paddling arms and swimming independently. It's so special and I feel privileged and proud to be part of their journey and see them move through the programmes from floaties, all the way up to a dippers class. There's nothing better to brighten your day than a class of children all smiling back at you!"
Proud of our pools
Our lessons are taught in specially selected pools, and pool relationships are absolutely key to our business and we work hard to ensure partnerships are long-term and happy. We have dedicated pool operating expertise that allows us to fully understand and manage our relationships with pool operators, ensuring the highest standards for customers. Our Health and Safety record is impeccable. We pride ourselves on our approach to Health and Safety through our business operations and processes, training and inspection.
Proud of our team values
Our team members are bound together with a complete love of their job and shared experiences. Working for Puddle Ducks is a fabulous job that fits around family life. Puddle Ducks was founded in 2002 by Tracy Townend and Jo Stone after they met at ante-natal classes. As their friendship grew they realised they shared more in common than the birth of their first children - they shared an ambition to succeed in business; the need to strike a work-life balance; and a desire to pass on the joy of swimming to babies and children.
This resonates with several of our team members, we caught up with Emma to find out more...
Proud to be part of the Puddle Ducks family
We love hearing from swimmers and their parents about what makes their lessons so special. One of our swimmers dads Jonathan, tells us about his son James and the impact of being a proud Puddle Duck.