Swimming

Paddling Pools/Splash Pools in Hampshire, Berkshire and Surrey

Posted by Louise NorthHantsMum on in Outings, Seasons, Summer, Swimming 0 Comment

It’s tooooo hot today, so if you are looking for somewhere to take the children and cool off, this post might help.

Don’t forget to keep covered, even when you are in the water in the sun!

If you are looking for local Lido’s in Hampshire, check out my post from a few years ago which has a list of local Lido’s and their details.

Also, check out Chineham Splash Park which opened in 2016.

Hampshire

Eastrop Park

Eastrop Park has a paddling pool that is VERY popular in the warmer weather.

There are two car parks and the first one always gets very busy, very quickly.

If you walk into town, there is also a splash area on the way, although I’m always a bit dubious about the quality of the water here.

Fleet Pond, near Farnborough, also has a very small beach.

Gosport Splash Park

Gosport Splash Park was refurbished a few years ago and it looks brilliant!

It’s open from 10am till 7pm from March to October.

Berkshire

Wellington Country Park, Berkshire

A new splash Zone opened at Wellington Country Park in May 2016.

It’s suitable for all ages up to 8 years old.

California Country Park, Finchampstead

California Country Park, Berkshire, has a fenced off paddling pool.

A NHM Secret Reviewer did a Review of California Country Park in 2014 so if you need more details about the Country Park, check out this post.

Beale Park, Berkshire

Beale Park has a paddling pool which is open from Easter Weekend.

There is an entry fee to pay to get into Beale Park.

Surrey

Frensham Ponds

Frensham Pond is a natural area which has a proper beach.

A NHM Secret Reviewer very recently reviewed Frensham Common which provides details about the area.

Water Babies

Posted by Louise NorthHantsMum on in Babies, Guest Posts, New Parents, Pregnancy, Swimming 2 Comments

Hi, I’m Kate and I work for Water Babies Berkshire. We cover both Berkshire and North Hampshire and currently swimming in 23 venues with a few new ones looking good for next term!

I’m passionate about Water Babies and first heard about it when my Mum bought my little boy, then only 10 months, a term of swimming for his birthday. We started swimming and loved it so much that we asked for vouchers for Christmas presents so we continued onto our second term. My little boy is now three and a half and is still enjoying swimming with Water Babies. The added bonus is that through his swimming I heard about a job opening, applied and now I’ve been here six months!

Water Babies has given us both great water confidence, they actually teach you as the parent to teach your baby to swim. We are a family value-based company and embrace every child that swims with us. We understand that children learn at different speeds and our lessons are taught in stages over a ten week period to encourage all children to move along at the same level.

Rebooking for your next term is so easy, if you wish to continue in your class for the following term you don’t even need to remember to rebook since we automatically do this for you!

Water Babies has given me a wonderful bond with my son; he loves messing around with Daddy in the pool but Mummy is for lessons and “proper swimming”! I can actually say, that out of all the baby clubs and courses you do as a parent (and I was lucky enough to stay at home with my son from birth to three) Water Babies was THE best thing that I did with him.

Not only did I get lots of cuddles with him in the pool and afterwards to for our “ahem” afternoon nap, but it’s given him a vital life-saving skill. He knows what to do if he falls into water and he is able to swim to the surface, turn himself around, get to the side and hold on! This to me is one of the best gifts he has been given. I wish I had done the same with my twin daughters when they were little.

Water Babies sets your child on a journey which takes them right up until they start school. After that we are lucky enough to be able to refer our little swimmers onto another swim school. Our terms run over 10 weeks during term time only, meaning that swimming does not interfere with your family holidays.

At the end of each term we hold an underwater photo shoot, which gives you as a parent the amazing opportunity not only to have an eleventh lesson but to get a forever keepsake of your time at Water Babies. Your little one will never be that small again and seeing them underwater is an amazing experience.

We set up a full underwater studio, including a backdrop and lighting and use some great professional photographers that are amongst the best in their field. We always aim to get you at least one fantastic shot however most parents get at least 12 amazing pictures to choose from.

We offer a beginners package, consisting of your first ten weeks of swimming and an automatic place on one of our shoots. All our swimmers are required to wear a neoprene nappy in the pool which we call Happy Nappys. These help to keep the pool safe from any little accidents that might happen during your lesson.

These can be bought directly from us at Water Babies when you book on or online from our website www.waterbabies.co.uk. Babies can start with us at any age.

We offer hydro pools for those under 12 pounds or 12 weeks old and all of our other pools are heated to at least 30 degrees making them lovely to swim in. Having tried a few out now myself, I can actually say that.

The best bit now! We are taking bookings for beginners on Tuesday 13th January for our February term which starts w/c Monday 9th February.

All you have to do is call us on 01256 844926 on the 13th and we can find you and your little one the most suitable class for you and get you booked on our next course.

Please feel free to follow us on Twitter and Facebook you can find us at:

https://twitter.com/WBBerkshire

https://www.facebook.com/WaterBabiesBerkshire

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Swimming Pools in North Hampshire suitable for Babies and Children

Posted by Louise NorthHantsMum on in Babies, Children, Swimming 2 Comments

I can’t believe I haven’t done a post about swimming pools in the area yet!

Let me know if I’ve missed any.

Public Swimming Pools

Private Swimming Pools

I’m putting together a list of swimming schools and classes in the area, and hope to get it published before Christmas!

Review 2013: Basingstoke Aquadrome

Posted by Louise NorthHantsMum on in Reviews of Days Out, Swimming 1 Comment

Basingstoke Aquadrome

I’ve been to the Aquapark many times but when we went it was my husband and daughters first time. I’m so old, that I actually remember when the swimming pool was Westfield Lido, and they used to open the glass doors so you could run down the hill, where the Bowling Alley now stands. It was always a pleasure going in the water that was full of grass! lol.

We went on a Friday evening, at 4pm. It wasn’t too busy, about 20 people in the whole aquapark section.

Play/Swimming Area

My little one loved the tiny toddler pool. She must have spent about half an hour going on the tiny elephant slide. I did think this pool was a bit cold. The baby beach was great. My little one loved the plastic puzzles on the wall. But beware of the water shoot. We nearly got drenched under this!

The lazy river was fab. We went into each of the different sections and our favourite was the one with the seating. My little one could stand up here and she enjoyed walking up and down the seating and being carried through the water jets. The lazy river wasn’t too fast but you do need to be very careful to avoid the fierce jets!

My husband thoroughly enjoyed the slides although he didn’t really rate the yellow slide.  We spent a couple of hours in the pool. It was a great bonding experience.

Food

We didn’t try this so I cannot comment.

Baby Facilities

The family changing rooms were excellent. Very large and they each had a plastic baby changing stand and a nappy changing bin.

Facilities

Were in good condition. One thing I don’t like is that the showers aren’t enclosed. You have to shower with your swimming costume on (unless you have no shame!), so you can’t shower properly. The toilets were in a good condition but I hate public swimming pool toilets. They are always wet. Yuk.

Parking

There is lots of parking (although not as much as there used to be because of the Spruce Goose hotel extension and the Parachute place), but none that is particularly well placed if you have small children with you. It is free parking though.

Price

As it was Off Peak, my husband and I both paid £5.45 each. My little one was free and from what I can see on the website, all children under 4 are free. You need to double check this though, as I wasn’t quite sure about this.

Other Information

I wouldn’t recommend attempting to take more than one child on your own. If you have more than one small child, you really need a one adult to one child ratio. For safety, I wouldn’t suggest using the lazy river with more than one child at a time. The website states that:

“Children under the age of 4 must wear approved flotation devices and be accompanied by a responsible adult in the ratio of 1:1.”

Our little one didn’t have a flotation device, but that was our decision and we were happy with this as there were two of us to look after her.

The parent and baby beach is open every day from 10.30am and is £3.50.

Rating

4.5 out of 5. We had a lovely couple of hours in the water, but I took half a point off because the water was colder than I would have liked and the showers were open so you can’t really shower properly.

Lido’s in Hampshire

Posted by Louise NorthHantsMum on in Outings, Swimming 0 Comment

This week’s theme is “Outside” so there will be a few blog posts about things to do outside. Apparently the weather is going to improve towards the end of the week. Fingers crossed!!

I found most of this information at: http://www.lidos.org.uk/. Does anyone else remember when the Aquadrome was Westfield Lido and you could run down the hill, where the bowling alley is now? Or perhaps I’m showing my age 😀

I’ve not been to any of these so apologies if they are no longer open. Might be something a bit novel to do with the children when the sun is shining!

Hampshire

Petersfield Open Air Pool

Heath Road, Petersfield, Hants GU31 4DZ
Telephone: 01730 265143

This is an open air heated swimming pool. The pool is open from mid April until the end of September each year. The pool also has a springboard with a 3-metre deep end and has evening sessions.

Lymington: Seawater Baths
Bath Road, Lymington, Hampshire SO41 3RU
Tel: 01590 674865

This is the second largest straight sided lido in the UK, an unheated sea-water swimming pool.

Aldershot Lido
Guildford Road, Aldershot, Hampshire GU12 4BP
Tel: 01252 323482

The pool is very large, with extensive shallows for children to play in, a diving area and exciting water slides. There is an adjoining main 25m indoor pool, an additional teaching pool, plus a 24,000 sq ft gym.
The Lido is open 10.00am – 7pm, May to September – though off season it is used by a canoe club.

Berkshire

Newbury Lido
Northcroft Leisure Centre, Northcroft Lane, Newbury, Berkshire RG14 1RS
Tel: 01635 31199

This is a heated lido and there is also a 10m heated outdoor baby pool.

Hilsea Lido
Portsmouth, Hampshire PO2 9RP
Tel. 023 9266 4608
or 023 9282 3822 [Victoria Swimming Centre]

Outdoor unheated pool, with adjacent children’s paddling pool.