Vancouver, Surrey parents drowning in swim registration gridlock

"Absolute madness": Parents drowning in swim lesson registration gridlock

Josep Suria/Shutterstock | City of Surrey

Registration frustrations have forced many parents in Vancouver and Surrey to speak out after facing yet another summer without a space for their kids in a city-run swimming lesson.

It’s been a challenge for years, but many say the waitlists have never been this bad, and some are turning to $500 private lessons out of desperation.

They have called the process “madness” and so difficult that they are tempted to let their child never learn the skill, which is something experts are worried is going to lead to higher drownings in the province in the future.

Claudia Arrieta is mom to a 3-year-old and a 1.5-year-old and is among those who have been almost militant in her efforts to sign up online.

“I have been trying to book toddler swimming lessons in South Surrey since May 2022. I have never been able to secure a spot despite being online 45 minutes before registration opens every season,” she said.

For her, it’s on the City of Surrey to step up and provide more options.

“Not being able to access lifesaving skills is a source of stress and disappointment,” the mom said.

She’s not alone. Martina Gueorguieva lives steps away from Surrey’s newest facility, Grandview Heights Aquatic Centre, and says she has not gotten a spot for her kids in the last four years.

“I set alarms on my phone to alert me when registration will begin, and despite logging in and trying – I have never secured a spot. My son is now eight years old and has learned to “swim” by trial and error at random pools and while on vacation. He has never had proper skills taught to him. My daughter is 18 months, and I haven’t bothered trying to get her in lessons because it causes more anxiety and frustration at this point.”

Crescent Beach Naturists/Facebook

Julia Chomcy has three kids and is number 200 on a three-year-long waitlist at the privately-run Crescent Beach Swimming Club; and says it feels like getting a spot anywhere comes down to who you know, which isn’t fair.

Despite being “always ready to go” during Surrey registration, she says her children, 4, 7, and 9, end up on waitlists, and then they sometimes get into their lessons with little notice.

“Last session, my youngest got a spot 11 minutes before it started,” she said about the chaos.

Plus, depending on the level, it can be even more competitive. There are issues not only with learning to swim but also with ensuring that kids stay within their peer group.

“My nine-year-old passed level 3 back in April 2023 (a waitlisted class), but there weren’t even level 4 class waitlist options this time (because they filled up so fast). I put her on a waitlist for level 5, and when she got in last minute (20 minutes before the class started), I made the mistake of asking if she was allowed in without completing level 4. They refused to let her try and wouldn’t even do one of those quick swim tests to see if she could do it even though I said she has been taking private lessons,” Chomcy said.

“It is absolute madness getting kids into anything around here nowadays,” Chomcy said.

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Vancouver’s pool woes

Marianne Catafesta/Shutterstock

While things have been challenging for many parents in Surrey, they do have more options, at least when it comes to outdoor pools. Not only has the post-pandemic surge led to capacity issues in Vancouver, but this summer, only two outdoor pools are open for swimming lessons.

Arlene Panganiban, founder of VancouverMom.ca, says lots of parents are being forced to turn to pricey private lessons in order to ensure their kids have this essential skill.

“It is more expensive,” she said. “Going to the community centre, you know, it could cost like $90 to $100 for maybe like eight sessions, where, if you’re going to a private swimming school, you are paying like $500, $600, so that’s the challenge there.”

Pedalheads Swim and Marina’s Swim School are among the reputable private schools, and they typically have a smaller ratio of kids to parents, but this isn’t an option for everyone.

“The struggle is because, yes, you do want your kids to have swimming lessons and have an affordable price to pay for your kids to go to this, but you know, what would you do?

But living in Vancouver, with all the beautiful beaches, is essential for her family, and she knows many parents are making tough financial choices to make this work.

“There are parents who have the income to spend that, but what happens to the families that have more kids or just don’t have the available or the finances to pay constantly for the swimming lessons if it is $500?”

Centennial Outdoor Pool/City of Coquitlam

She said she understands why some parents are leaving Vancouver to enroll their children in lessons or attend free outdoor pool drop-ins like at Port Coquitlam-run facilities.

“With the cost of living here in Vancouver nowadays, families are looking for things to do for free or for cheap things to do around the city.”

Some parents have been lucky to get a spot for their children, like Gina McIntosh, but she’s learned a lot of lessons along the way and says it does seem to be getting better. McIntosh says Surrey’s Sunnyside Outdoor Pool was completely full, but undeterred, she looked beyond her neighbourhood and found space at Unwin Outdoor Pool in Newton.

“Yes, there is space; people need to be willing to drive,” she told Daily Hive in a phone call, telling other parents, “Don’t feel defeated if your local neighbourhood pool is full.”

Cities respond

City of Surrey

City of Surrey – Parks, Recreation & Culture says it has trained and hired more than 100 new lifeguards through 2023 and provided 1,275 lesson registrations than the previous year. Plus, recruitment efforts continue.

“To date, that is an increase of 11% in our lesson offerings at our five indoor aquatic centres as well as at our eight seasonal outdoor pools. We are committed to ensuring children, youth and adults in Surrey have the opportunity to learn to swim and have drowning prevention education,” a spokesperson said.

The Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation says they have also seen an influx in staffing, which is helping free up more spaces, but they admit there’s a lot of work to be done.

“We understand the ongoing demand for swimming lessons and are taking several steps to address it. Over the past two years, we have increased recruitment, resulting in more staff hires than ever before, and we are committed to continuing these efforts,” said Tony Syskakis, supervisor of Aquatics Training & Development, adding that it’s offering staff more shifts.

“We also have significantly more classes in 2024 compared to 2023. We will continue our efforts to expand the number of swimming lessons offered across our system of pools,” he added.

Should swimming lessons be part of the BC curriculum?

Dusan Petkovic/Shutterstock

While cities are trying to deal with the surge, there are also efforts to get the province to the table.

Lenea Grace with the Lifesaving Society BC and Yukon says we are playing catch-up after the pandemic.

“What we have here is a problem in the fact that we have young children who missed out on some crucial years of swim lessons during those pandemic years and don’t have the skills that they should have by this age,” she said.

“We think that every child has the right to these essential life skills, and that’s why we advocate for swimming lessons in the school curriculum, or the bare minimum of Swim to Survive for all Grade 3 students.”

panitanphoto/Shutterstock

The City of Surrey is among the supporters of bringing swimming lessons to the Surrey School District.

“Swimming literacy is an essential life skill, and the City of Surrey would be very supportive of efforts to have a learn-to-swim program available to all school students,” it said.

“We enjoy an equally strong relationship with Surrey School District #36, and through our Joint Use Agreement, we currently provide swim lessons and recreation swim opportunities to local schools. We are well positioned with these strong partnerships to provide a district-wide lesson program should the opportunity materialize.”

dotshock/Shutterstock

But that idea is dead in the water, apparently. The province isn’t considering including swimming lessons in the K-12 curriculum at this time for a few reasons.

“While swimming lessons are not a mandated part of the curriculum, some schools in BC incorporate swimming lessons into their education programming. For something to be a mandatory part of the Physical and Health Education curriculum, it has to be possible to deliver it to students across the province. Not all communities will have the required infrastructure to offer swimming lessons,” the Ministry of Education and Child Care told Daily Hive.

The ministry added that water education is important, and that’s why students can earn elective credits through the External Credential Program.

The ministry works closely with the Lifesaving Society, but Grace says they would love to be even more involved, especially in getting basic skills out to everyone, like the Swim to Survive programs.

Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock

Gueorguieva is supportive of that. The Surrey parent and healthcare professional says it’s especially important that all infants have the ability to self-rescue.

“I work in the pediatric ER, and drowning and near-drowning is something we unfortunately have seen recently. Swim lessons should be at the highest priority,” Gueorguieva told Daily Hive. “Especially because we live so close to the beach and lakes.”

The Swim to Survive program teaches kids how to self-rescue if they happen to fall into deep water. They learn to tread water and swim to safety. Incredibly, Grace says it can be taught in one day. She says they’d love to see it also brought in for all family members, especially to close the gaps on new Canadians who might not have the swimming skills.

Bridget Calip/Shutterstock

New Canadians are four times less likely to be able to swim than Canadians who were born here. However, 93% of people play and participate in activities on or near the water.

That message is among the society’s efforts ahead of National Drowning Prevention Week, which is the third week of July. The week is intended to raise awareness of drowning prevention and ways everyone can stay safe while on the water.

“What we don’t want to see is a generation of Canadians who don’t have the same skills, and we don’t want to see that result in a higher number of drownings 5, 10, 20 years down the road. These conversations have to start now.”