Good luck if lessons are cancelled trying to get the promised refund. Allow 20 working days they say from the date they send the money....what payment takes 20 working days and as expected, still not... See more
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I cannot fault the lessons or the teachers, both are excellent but the entire company is poorly managed. We have been using them since 2019 and the customer service has just gotten worse every year.... See more
My granddaughter has really benefited from lessons from Lucy at Bannatynes Stepps- excellent teacher! However their waiting list system is hopeless. My grandson was on the list but others who weren’t... See more
Daughter attended for 10 months, no progress update, no certificates at all. Classes full and by the time they got through the children my daughter must have had 5 minutes spent with her! "Management"... See more
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Not all its cracked up to be
My son has been attending for 3 years and had it not been for the instructor we had, we would probably have gone elsewhere, as the organisation and communication has been poor.
Our son had to change branch and instructor recently and following an experience last week we have decided to cancel.
Great tutor, but terrible waiting list system
My granddaughter has really benefited from lessons from Lucy at Bannatynes Stepps- excellent teacher! However their waiting list system is hopeless. My grandson was on the list but others who weren’t got into that class. There’s still a space, but no waiting list availability
Overall I am happy and my son has been…
Overall I am happy and my son has been swimming with them for 2 years, but 40% increase in price is way too much.
Amazing for my very able 4 year old!
My 4 year old is a very good swimmer for her age, and started SwimStars 2 weeks ago. She has not swum to her ability in any other classes ever (long standing issue but has still loved them more than anything), but she does swim almost to her ability here and comes out buzzing!
Because of her age, most swim schools put her in a lower ability group where she gets bored, swims to the level of the group and gets stuck there. Because of that, I didn't want to put her in a lower group than her ability, but on this occasion, SwimStars were right about the recommendation of half length improver, but they did agree to let her try a full length improver group (gospel according to their matrix, so best to ignore the matrix and speak to them instead!). I said I'd rather move her down than struggle to move her up.
We booked a free trial at Whitefield, the same day, but it was too noisy for her, the group was full and wasn't the best fit. The teacher suggested a different class of his elsewhere, the day after, where he can more cater for her (the rest of her group are still much older) and he's been fab! He is the first teacher to remember and correctly name my child. We have tried many pools recently and over the years, with having a child who loves & excels at swimming, I have become a bit of a 'swim school expert' or snob, not sure which.
Their communication with me was poor prior to my decision to trial and I almost didn't bother (plus it's an hour away from home). The first week we joined I got a text about the teacher being off sick and it even said who would replace him which was great, never experienced that before!
I have heard lots of reports about a lack of progression and children being stuck at a percentage of completion for many months, so I don't hold out much hope for that, but will reserve judgment. As far as my child's enjoyment and how the lesson structure builds over the 30 mins, I'm very satisfied for now. The other children do have a slightly better quality of stroke compared to other swim schools which I also liked.
My child was called a little Rebecca Adlington by 2 staff and 1 parent at her first lesson, which was cute! 😂
The Total Fitness centres are amazing, but the rules are strictly implemented, so make sure you read all the little signs ;-)
Rubbish
Rubbish, expensive, uninterested teachers and all round disappointment. Attended the Wakefield Total Fitness classes with both Daughters and would not recommend. Very unorganised and most of the kids spend most of the lesson clinging to the side freezing cold.
Bit unorganised
My 2 children attend swimming lessons with swimstars. Teachers are great but customer service is a bit of a let down. I was recently told by someone who works at the venue that because my children swim on a Monday if they cancel a lesson due to a bank hol then it is up to me to email to ask for a reimbursement. I was given an email address which I emailed to claim back what I have paid for missed bank hol lessons, and the email address wouldnt work came back as ‘undeliverable’. I phoned them to address this and they said they would sort the refund but couldn’t back date it. I pay £100 per month for these lessons so it isn’t cheap and thought this was a reputable company but they are not at all organised. My little boy is due to move up to the next stage but I can’t move him because there’s no availability in the next stage so his teacher said he can stay in the same stage until a place comes available, so pay £50 per month to carry on swimming in a class where he has passed all the criteria and won’t be learning anything new.
Disorganised
Attended a free “taster session” which you’d expect to include some background about what they would be doing and some guidance around what to do when visiting a new venue for the first time. Total shambles and the lesson consisted of the kids doing very little swimming instead taking turns to cover very short distances. Can’t see the benefit personally but have heard from others that maybe this was just a one off bad experience.
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