While we all learn to live with Covid-19, we want to reassure your safety, the safety of your family and that of our Puddle Ducks team members is of the highest importance. This document will outline all the safety procedures we are continuing to employ as a company and whilst you might not need all the detail, we want to be as transparent as possible about our policies. We have done all the work, all the thinking, all the risk assessments and taken every precaution to keep you, your family and our team members safe.
We are now in a position, from 16th August 2021, where we are finally able to run our lessons as we did pre-March 2020, with our teachers in the water, handling the children, using all our equipment and with our Swim Academy Level 1 & 2 parents and carers in England, back on dry land.
In addition to the already extremely high standards we demand of the pool operation at the pools where we swim, we have put in place the following:
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Staff Training and Expertise
- In addition to the team at Duck HQ, every local Puddle Ducks team has appointed a COVID-19 Officer, ensuring each Franchise is keeping up to date with government and health department updates. A COVID-19 Health and Safety Officer will be appointed for every pool session – they will be responsible for ensuring rules are being adhered to and the cleaning rota is being kept up to date.
- Where necessary, Poolside Assistants will be present and in many more pools that previously. This is to help customers to follow procedures, answer any questions and perform cleaning duties in between lessons.
- Our Teachers themselves are involved in the risk assessments for the pools at which they teach, and these now include, as standard, Covid-19 procedures including cleaning of equipment and high traffic areas, hand washing/sanitising for our team members and customers and the wearing of face coverings where the venue requires it.
- We have continually worked with any Teachers who are vulnerable themselves or living with a vulnerable family member to ensure they are comfortable with their working conditions although with the vaccination programme in the UK this has become much less of an issue.
- All our Teachers have been provided with and are required to complete online learning modules for every aspect of living with the Covid-19 virus; from risk assessing the teaching environment, to the cleaning of equipment, to the interaction with the customers.
- All Emergency Operating Procedures now include a section on Covid-19 and the current government guidance will be put in place as appropriate in terms of self-isolation and informing the correct track and trace organisation for your country if there is a confirmed infection.
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At the Pool
- Maximum numbers in each pool has been worked out based on guidelines and in conjunction with the individual venues. One parent or carer/child pair is considered one unit in terms of bather capacity. With teachers back in the water, Swim Academy occupancy can go back to pre-Covid levels.
- We are working closely with all the pool owners from whom we hire pools and they will all sign documentation to say their pools adhere to the revised PWTAG (The Pool Water Treatment Advisory Group) guidelines and the Government guidelines on cleaning in a non-healthcare setting. This is in addition to our water testing that takes place prior to every session.
- Our Puddle Ducks teams are conducting Site Specific Pool Risk Assessments detailing all aspects of the premises, who is responsible for cleaning each area including entering and exiting the building, reception areas, customer flow, play areas, food and beverage areas, changing rooms and the pool room itself.
- As standard, full ‘Life-saving and First Aid Provision and Training during COVID-19’ training has been given and all necessary PPE provided.
- Toys and equipment, owned by Puddle Ducks and used within swimming lessons will be sanitised throughout the lesson by submerging in the pool water as the levels of chlorine are sufficient to kill the virus after 15-20 seconds. At the end of the day, full disinfection will take place, where the toys and equipment are cleaned, sanitised, disinfected, rinsed and dried ready for the next day.
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Our Customers
- Our customers will be fully informed, prior to attending any venue, of the procedures in place at that particular venue and this includes new customers and those taking Courtesy Classes.
- Customers will either be required to wash their hands with the soap provided or use hand sanitiser, depending on the policy at that particular pool, before entering and after exiting the pool room. Wipes will be made available poolside if customers need them during a lesson.
- An addendum to our Customer Terms & Conditions has been written to detail what we expect from all of our customers when attending lessons during COVID-19.
- We have also updated our FAQs which cover some of the more practical questions you may have.
If you have any more questions, you can contact your Local Team and we have put together some FAQs which you might find useful as a first port of call.
Puddle Ducks HQ
