Find out more about our brilliant Mid Cheshire team - both in and out of the pool!
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Rachel Bateson
Franchise Manager
Rachel started her career as a Bluecoat at Pontins in Somerset – mainly singing and dancing!! After that, she did something completely different and went to work for a bank! After starting on the tills, she worked her way up to area manager and was there 21 years! When she had her two children she decided she wanted a change of career – she had always taken her girls swimming, so when a job with Puddle Ducks came up, she jumped at the chance. Starting out in the office she is now our fabulous Mid Cheshire Franchise Manager and absolutely loves it! -
Stephanie Stokoe-Spivey
Customer Care and Operations Manager
Following a successful career in the cosmetics industry, Steph joined us in the Puddle Ducks office in 2013. Steph has two children, one who has been through the Puddle Ducks journey from start to finish and is a brillaint swimmer, and one who is just starting classes with us in baby and pre-school!
Steph oversees the brilliant customer care team and is taking on an Operations role at Baron's Quay very soon!
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Rachel Gumbley
Customer Care Advisor
Another Rachel who also came from a bank, Rachel G (as we call her) is one of our lovely Customer Care Advisors. She has two children, Isabel and Matthew. As well as taking care of our lovely customers, she also orders all of our equipment.You will more than often hear Rachel's happy smiley voice at the end of the phone when you call the office and she is always more than happy to help!
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Lindsay Kerr
Local Marketing Manager
Lindsay joined us back in October 2019 having spent the last five years running her own After school club for 6-13 year olds and prior to that, spending 20 years in marketing and advertising roles across the UK.Both her children swam with Puddle Ducks from 9 weeks old and subsequently Swim Academy and when the opportunity came up to join the team it was the perfect fit!
Lindsay oversees all the marketing and communications for Mid Cheshire and makes the best coffee!
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Lois Dewey
Receptionist
Lois recently joined Puddle Ducks as our new Receptionist at Barons Quay. Prior to that she was a Senior Receptionist at a Conveyancing Firm and then took a year off to have her little girl Bonnie who is now 2. When she is not welcoming customers or singing Peppa Pig, Lois loves walking in the Lake District or going exploring!
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Nicola Wragge
Head of Teaching
Nici started working for us in 2007. After taking time out to have two of her three children, she was introduced to Puddle Ducks, starting as a Poolside assistant, she soon qualified to teach at all levels and is now the North West Regional Technical Manager for Puddle Ducks Head Office! Nici loves sharing her knowledge not just with the children and parents but with all of our new Puddle Ducks teachers.
Nici also holds her Silver Cross in open water swimming and has 3 girls who love swimming and have aspirations to teach themselves, in fact one of her daughters Sasha is now a qualified Swim Academy teacher!
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Melanie Ridge
Teacher
13 years ago Mel moved in next door to her Puddle Ducks teacher, who persuaded her to become a teacher too and she absolutely loves it! Her three daughters all swam at Puddle Ducks - two of whom have gone on to join swimming clubs and one who now works at Barons Quay! Mel loves open water swimming and teaches many of our Baby & Pre-school classes here in Mid Cheshire! She is now a Senior BPS teacher and recently qualified as a Puddle Ducks program assessor!
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Kirsty Lindley
Teacher
Kirsty is a Mum of two little girls, and has been a teacher at Puddle Ducks for just over six years after bringing her little girl to swimming lessons at Puddle Ducks and thinking what a brilliant job it would be!
She love's her role so much, she says it doesn't feel like work and she thrives on seeing the children progress and achieve so much under her brilliant teaching!
Kirsty says "She has the best job in the world!"
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Amy French
Teacher
Amy teaches our Baby and Pre-School and Swim Academy lessons and has a degree in Primary Teaching specialising in Language, Communication and Literacy so she is super
qualified to work with our lovely children!
She has two boys of her own and in 2019 decided to have a career change and pursue her love of swimming and become a swim teacher!
Amy says "Joining the Puddle Ducks team was the best decision I made career wise. It really was the light I needed at a time where I was unsure what to do with my career. It works beautifully around my family and I just love it!"
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Mel Lawton
Teacher
Mel decided to become a swimming teacher after being involved in competitive swimming from the age of 7. When she turned 16 she began her journey to gain her teaching qualifications and she hasn't looked back since! After finishing her A levels she began a full time job as a swimming teacher.
She joined Puddle Ducks in March 2019 and she says it was the best decision she has ever made.
Mel says "I love the community and family feel to the company and that support is provided at every part of the journey"
"My favourite thing about the job is seeing the happiness and surprise on a child's face when they realise they have achieved something which they never thought they could do"
In her spare time Mel enjoys keeping fit, with her favourite activities being CrossFit and Climbing.
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Dawn Owen
Teacher
Dawn started with us as a Baby & Pre-school teacher in 2011 and feels such enjoyment and fulfilment from teaching and witnessing a nervous little swimmer grow into a confident swimmer who now shouts 'more' when a jumping activity is coming to an end!
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Rebekah Knight
Teacher
Rebekah has a degree in Bioveterinary Science and is currently taking a year out before more studying! She has been swimming as long as she can remember and prior to becoming a swim teacher spent time competing and volunteering with the Vale Royal Lifesaving Club.
She is a real water baby, sailing, windsurfing and paddle boarding in her spare time and wants to share her passion for swimming and water with others firmly believing all children should be taught the life skill of swimming!
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Sam Elliott
Teacher
Sam is a busy lady! She is a Swim Academy teacher, mum of two to Amy and Seb, a Senior researcher, and Iron(wo)man! She is a keen open water swimmer and having loved taking both her children to swimming lessons, she decided that whilst on maternity leave with her son she would train to become a swimming teacher!
Sam teachers at Barons Quay and is passionate about teaching kids to swim, and building their confidence as it's such an important skill to learn. She's so proud of the progress her swimmers are making,and simply loves her job!
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Chris Lewis
Teacher
Chris joined Puddle Ducks during the pandemic after a 30 year career in the police and studying mental health.
She has always been interested in swimming and ensured that her children joined Puddle Ducks and learnt to swim from 6 weeks old so being a swimming teacher means a lot to her as she has come full circle with her son Jake now working as a Poolside assistant at Barons Quay!
She loves seeing the children progressing through the programs and apart from teaching. Chris loves to swim, scuba dive and walk her lovely dog Roxy!
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Bethany Nuttall
Teacher
Bethany has been with us for over two years now. Prior to that she worked in a nursery, but it was her love of swimming and her love of working with children that made her take the Puddle Ducks swim teacher job as the perfect combination! Bethany says "I love to watch the confidence the children gain and the progression they make, it makes the job so worthwhile". Outside of work, Bethany has two little girls and a dog that keep her busy and entertained!
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Sasha Bennett
Teacher
Sasha started working for Puddle Ducks in 2018 as a Poolside Assistant. She loved the job so much she decided to gain her teaching qualifications. Qualifying in 2019 she was awarded her STA Award and shortly after her STA certificate.
Sasha then joined the local swimming club as a teacher on a voluntary basis alongside her teaching sessions at Puddle Ducks. Sasha says "teaching is fun and rewarding. I love seeing the progression in my swimmers and building positive fun relationships with them".
In her spare time, Sasha has a passion for gaming art and would love to pursue this in the future.
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Jeanette Steadman
Jeanette has been teaching babies and children to swim for a number of years, and joined our Mid Cheshire team in early 2021. She loves working for Puddle Ducks so much she has taken on as many lessons as she can!
Jeanette is also a licensed and accredited Children’s Well-being facilitator. It’s her life’s passion to teach children important life skills, and watch them develop, flourish and thrive. Especially in the water!
When Jeanette is not in the water she's a busy mum to two daughters, Eleisha & Maisy and also looks after her little dog Tilly!
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Ali Beckman
Teacher
Last but certainly not least our Head Office Technical Director Ali Beckman also teaches for us! Ali is a UK leading expert in swimming teaching, highly regarded within the industry.
Ali was a competitive swimmer for Swinton ASC and Salford Triple S until an injury forced her to quit at the age of 15. This is when a love of teaching swimming was born as Ali still wanted to have some involvement in the sport.
Ali still swims, competing in long distance open water events and loves watching her two children train and compete for Northwich Centurions (swimming club).
