HOW TO HIRE · LESSONS & TUTORING

How to hire a swimming teacher in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

No register lists swimming teachers. Here is the vetting to ask for, what to ask about the pool and safety, and the terms to agree.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a swimming teacher in five steps

  1. Say what the lessons are forA nervous beginner, an adult learner, stroke technique, additional needs or a set distance. A swimming teacher plans each differently.
  2. Ask for the vetting for your nationDBS in England and Wales, PVG in Scotland, AccessNI in Northern Ireland — a swimming teacher teaching a child for a weekly half-hour should show you theirs.
  3. Ask about their coachingThe award a swimming teacher holds, who gave it, and the level of the people they coach now.
  4. Book a single lesson firstJudge a swimming teacher on one swimming lesson before paying for a block of lessons.
  5. Get the terms in a messageBefore you pay for a block of lessons: pool entry, the lifeguard arrangement, and lessons missed for illness. A message on Locufy is enough.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

None of the four UK nations licenses or registers swimming teachers; the title is not protected, and sessions run at a leisure centre or a private pool. A coaching award is something to ask about and verify with the body that gave it.

Ask the swimming teacher for the award and the body that gave it, and for two people or families they coach now.

Vetting for lessons with a child

Regulated activity in England and Wales starts when someone teaches or instructs a child on more than three days in a 30-day spell, or overnight; a swimming teacher teaching for a weekly half-hour passes that easily, so the enhanced DBS check with the children's barred list is the one to ask for. Since 1 September 2026, being supervised by someone else no longer takes a swimming teacher out of that rule. Scotland's system is the PVG scheme — mygov.scot lists tutors and instructors engaged by a parent among the roles to check — and Northern Ireland's is an enhanced AccessNI check with the children's barred list, which a self-employed swimming teacher gets through an Umbrella Body.

Ask a swimming teacher to show you the certificate before the first swimming lesson, and write down its date — there is no official expiry. PVG proof in Scotland; the AccessNI certificate from their nidirect account in Northern Ireland. gov.uk →

Coaching qualification

No statutory register covers swimming coaching; the evidence is the swimming teacher's certificate and the body that issued it. Ask whether they hold a swimming teaching qualification and a pool lifesaving award.

Ask which body awarded the swimming teacher's qualification, and when, then check with that body.

Insurance and first aid

The law on first aid at work covers a swimming teacher's own needs, not yours, but HSE strongly recommends that anyone running sessions plans for the public too. No law requires public liability cover, but it is what pays if a client is injured at a leisure centre or a private pool.

Ask the swimming teacher for the insurer's name, the policy dates, and whether they hold a current first-aid certificate. hse.gov.uk →

VAT

Swimming lessons are exempt only when a swimming teacher gives them personally as a sole trader or partner, swimming being ordinarily taught in schools; lessons sold by a swim school company or its employed teachers are standard-rated. Above the £90,000 registration threshold that business has to charge VAT and show it separately, next to its VAT number.

Ask whether the swimming teacher teaches as a sole trader or for a swim school company, and for the VAT number if VAT is added. gov.uk →

“Which criminal record check do you hold, and when was it issued?”

A good answer: The right one for your nation — enhanced DBS, PVG or AccessNI — with a date, shown before a swimming teacher starts.

“Which pool, and who pays for entry?”

A good answer: A named pool, its times, and who pays pool entry for each lesson.

“Is there a lifeguard on duty during lessons?”

A good answer: At a public pool, yes; at a private pool, ask what the swimming teacher's safety cover is.

“Will you be in the water?”

A good answer: For nervous beginners and young children, often yes.

“How do you teach a nervous child?”

A good answer: Small steps, no surprises, and praise; never forced under water.

“Can you adapt lessons for additional needs?”

A good answer: An honest answer about training and experience.

“If my child is ill, or you are, what happens to that swimming lesson?”

A good answer: A notice period both ways, written down, and any swimming lesson the swimming teacher cancels made up or refunded.

Getting the quote right

  • Who actually attends in the water — the swimming teacher you chose, or a cover teacher, employed or subcontracted
  • What a swimming lesson costs and how many minutes it runs
  • Anything you must buy for the swimming lessons, listed
  • What happens to a block of lessons if you stop early, or the swimming teacher does
  • Pool entry for the learner and the teacher, and who pays it
  • The cancellation rule in writing, because a leisure booking for a fixed date or period usually has no 14-day right to cancel (regulation 28 of the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013)
  • The VAT number if the swim school charges VAT, with VAT on the lessons as a separate line

Walk away if

  • No criminal record certificate for regular swimming lessons with your child, or "it isn't needed for swimming"
  • No insurance, or a swimming teacher who cannot name the insurer
  • They offer injury treatment as a physiotherapist but are not on the HCPC Register
  • A private pool with no clear safety arrangements
  • A block of lessons demanded up front, with no written refund terms
LOW
£22
TYPICAL
£27
HIGH
£45

What a swimming teacher costs: £22–£45 per lesson

Private swimming teachers charge per lesson, usually thirty minutes; pool entry may be extra. Swimming Lessons price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Swimming teachers near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. Water confidenceGetting in, floating and breathing out under water.
  2. Kicking and floatingBody position and leg action.
  3. StrokesOne stroke at a time, front crawl or breaststroke first.
  4. DistanceSwimming further unaided.
  5. Safety skillsTreading water and getting out safely.

Treading water
Staying upright in deep water.
Front crawl
The fastest stroke, often taught first.
Buoyancy aid
Floats used while learning.
Lifeguard
The person watching the pool for safety.
One-to-one lesson
A private lesson with one learner.
Stroke correction
Lessons fixing technique for confident swimmers.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep the paperworkThe block terms and the receipts are your record if anything goes wrong.
Test the progressAfter a few weeks, watch a lesson — confidence in the water and distance swum should both have grown.
What you are owedNobody honest promises a set distance by the summer. Hold the swimming teacher to the swimming lessons agreed, taught with care.
Leave the reviewReviews on Locufy come only from booked swimming lessons. A problem goes to the swimming teacher first through the make-it-right step.

STEP 1Put it to the swimming teacher in writingName the swimming lessons that fell short and the remedy you want; with swimming teachers, it is often pool entry charged on top of the lesson price. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 you can ask a swimming teacher to repeat what fell short, or for part of the money back if that cannot be done.
STEP 2Use the make-it-right step on LocufyLeave under four stars and you are asked whether to send it to the swimming teacher first; we follow it through, then the review is published.
STEP 3Get help from Trading StandardsNo regulator covers swimming teachers, so a consumer complaint goes to Trading Standards through your nation's helpline: Citizens Advice on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 800 9060, or Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland.
STEP 4Money still in disputeSmall claims handle a dispute with a swimming teacher without a solicitor: up to £10,000 in England and Wales (small claims track), £5,000 in Scotland (simple procedure) and £5,000 in Northern Ireland. The block terms and the receipts will be your evidence.

Hiring a swimming teacher: questions people ask

Not automatically. Teaching your child for a weekly half-hour counts as regulated activity in England and Wales once it passes three days in 30, which a barred person may not do, so the check worth seeing is an enhanced DBS with the children's barred list — or PVG in Scotland, AccessNI in Northern Ireland.

Not one of the four UK nations keeps a register of people who teach swimming. Ask for a swimming teaching qualification and the body that awarded it.

£22–£45 a lesson, with £27 typical for a half-hour private lesson. The swimming lessons price guide explains the spread, and the search at the top finds swimming teachers near you.

Not from a swimming teacher working as a sole trader or partner: swimming is taught in schools and that tuition is exempt. A swim school company or its employed teachers are standard-rated, adding VAT once over £90,000.

Group lessons at a leisure centre cost far less; one-to-one helps nervous or adult learners move faster.

Usually twenty-five to thirty minutes.

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Swimming teachers near you

Swimming teachers in LondonSwimming teachers in ManchesterSwimming teachers in BirminghamSwimming teachers in GlasgowSwimming teachers in BelfastAll swimming teachers on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. gov.uk (DBS) — regulated activity with children
  2. gov.uk — change to the definition of regulated activity with children from 1 September 2026
  3. mygov.scot — who needs PVG scheme membership (personal employers)
  4. nidirect — AccessNI checks for the self-employed and personal employees
  5. HSE — first aid FAQs (first aid for the public)
  6. HSE — get insurance for your business
  7. HCPC — check the Register
  8. gov.uk — Sport supplies that are VAT exempt (VAT Notice 701/45)
  9. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 28 — contracts excluded from cancellation
  10. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  11. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 30 — cancellation period
  12. Citizens Advice — deciding whether to make a small claim (England and Wales)
  13. Scottish Courts and Tribunals — guide to simple procedure
  14. nidirect — small claims process (Northern Ireland)
  15. Education and vocational training (VAT Notice 701/30) — 6.1 The treatment of private tuition
  16. GOV.UK — VAT rates
  17. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register