The Amateur Swimming Association (ASA) is the governing body for the sport of swimming in England. Swimming clubs affiliating to the ASA must comply with its rules and the laws of swimming.
To ensure that affiliated clubs offer quality swimming programmes the ASA has developed a swimmer and club development model called Swim 21 which provides a benchmark against which clubs can measure themselves. Clubs that achieve all of the standards are then accredited with ‘Swim 21’ status.
There are four levels for accreditation:
- Teaching (Club develops basic swimming skills)
- Skill Development (Club develops technical skills in a training environment) - OUR CURRENT LEVEL
- Competitive Development (Club runs a programme that produces District level swimmers)
- Performance (Club runs a programme that produces National level swimmers)
Within each level the elements for assessment are grouped into four areas:
- Swimmer Development
- Coach Development
- Club Administration
- Partnerships
Swim 21: Benefits/outcomes
The benefits of becoming a Swim 21 Accredited Club are mainly seen through the process itself. The programme enhances club management, strengthens the structures and unites the club with a philosophy and programmes that ensures the best environment is available for our swimmers Some key outcomes and benefits are listed below:
Swimmer Achievement
- Enables clubs to help swimmers achieve their full potential Swim 21 is a planning tool based upon the needs of swimmers and strives to provide them with the best possible environment.
Recognition
- National recognition that you are providing a quality service for all your members National recognition is received through the achievement of Swim 21 accreditation. As such all Swim 21 accredited clubs will be listed here (under 'Accredited Clubs') and in ASA publications.
- Recognition by Sport England that your club is safe, effective and child friendly through achievement of Sport England Clubmark Resources
- Resource materials on best practice available to your club - ensuring that your club shows good practice throughout its daily activity. Upon completion of your Audit your club will have access to a wide array of resource materials - in the form of Information Sheets, Templates, Resource Packs and Workshops. These will assist your club through the Swim 21 programme and beyond - your RDO will direct you to the resources that best match the needs of your club.
Funding
- Enhanced access to various sources of funding Clubs who are working towards or have achieved Swim 21 Accreditation may be looked upon more favourably when applying for sources of funding. For example. Swim 21 Accredited Clubs are prioritised to form links with local schools and PESSCL (Physical Education, School Sport Club Links) funding is available to support school-club link projects. In addition it can be used as a negotiation tool with Local Authorities, in terms of seeking additional water time or a reduction in it's cost, as your work towards Swim 21 may help achieve their objectives in terms of quality service provision.
Other benefits that Swim 21 will provide for your club include:
- Publicity/ promotion/ recognition & profile
- More members
- More coaches
- More officials/ volunteers
- Increased opportunity to secure funding
- A more organised & resourced club
- School/club links
- Greater support from ASA & other networks
- Club sustainability/ longevity/ development
- Swimmer achievement/development
- A successful method of spreading a club's workload
