Splash!

Putting babies into water to test their natural reflexes has been happening for centuries around the world. Baby swimming classes, however, have become increasingly popular in recent years and with good reason too.

Flying Start chats to Splash About, a children’s safety swimwear specialist, about why parents should enroll their babies on a swimming course

What are the benefits of teaching babies to swim?

There are many benefits to enrolling your baby on a swimming course. Every year lives are lost due to drowning related incidents. Enrolling your baby on a good swimming course will mean they can learn how to go to the surface of the water and float, or to move to the nearest side and hold on. Another advantage is that swimming helps to develop the heart and lungs. Swimming classes encourage babies to interact with each other, which in turn aids development, learning and coordination skills. It is also a fantastic bonding experience for parent and baby.

What should parents look for when choosing a swim class?

They should make sure that the teacher is properly qualified, experienced and associated with one of the governing bodies such as the ASA. Look out for a clean pool with decent changing rooms too.

What preparation should be made?

Babies can go to pools that are treated, which means that parents don’t have to wait until their child is inoculated. Any health concerns, however, should be taken to a GP for their professional advice. Babies need to wear a good swim nappy (never a normal nappy as they absorb water and become heavy). A mini wetsuit is also an excellent idea as it stops the baby from shivering in or out of the water. If swimming outside, sun protection is a must. Use a suit that is SPF50 . If you choose to use a normal t-shirt be aware that it will not be as protective when wet as it is when dry. Hold it up to the light; if it lets light through then it will let the sun’s rays through too. When a baby is starting to find their own balance by pulling up on furniture etc., then they are ready to begin using a buoyancy product. This should have a lot of removable buoyancy so that it is adjustable. The buoyancy needs to be around the chest and a snug fit. The parent needs to spend time with the child as they become used to it and learn to use the buoyancy rather than the buoyancy being in control.

What equipment is recommended?

A nappy with a good rib comes highly recommended. Splash About Happy nappies are either recommended or insisted on by most baby swim schools in the UK, as well as around the world. Something to keep them warm is also advisable, such as an open flat BabyWrap which is easy to use and adjustable. BabySnug is a mini wetsuit with a nappy, which is suitable for premature and small babies.

Splash About

Splash About’s Managing Director, Desri, started the company in 2000 when she designed the BabyWrap, the first open flat mini wetsuit. They supplied baby swim schools who kept asking for a nappy that didn't leak. Desri eventually came up with Spash About’s Happy Nappy, which is now insisted upon in a lot of swim schools after a lot of trial and error working closely with baby swim teachers. Since then, they have developed their range and due to demand, added the Water Buddies buoyancy range, including the neoprene buoyancy jacket, which Desri’s husband originally designed in the early 1990s. The jacket is now a must-have for learning to swim and for beach and pool safety worldwide. Desri has worked extensively with teachers and physiotherapists, often making swimming equipment for children with special needs too. All of Splash About’s products are for the care and well being of babies, children and adults. 

Babies Swimming Photographs: daniellaboutin.com, waterbabies.co.uk

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