CLUBFOCUS
but we haven ’ t targeted younger divers particularly . Most of our young divers , and indeed adults come to us through BSAC . We have had a good uptake both for Ocean Diver and Discovery Diver , which is aimed at 10 to 12-year-olds .
How do you help younger members participate in what can be an expensive sport ?
We do our best as a club to make learning to dive as affordable as possible for all new members . We do suggest that all new members purchase a mask to ensure proper fit , but it is club policy for members to use Phoenix scuba equipment and not to buy more expensive elements of kit until they have completed Ocean Diver training and are sure they want to carry on diving .
Junior members posing on the dropoff to 3.4m
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We secured a grant from Sport England more than 10 years ago , for £ 10,000 , and we purchased 10 sets of regulators , BCDs and cylinders with it .
What about your membership fees ?
Instructors and trainees poolside
Unfortunately , due to costs of pool hire and servicing , and lower membership numbers , we have been forced to increase our annual fee to £ 180 for adults , and £ 90 for under-18s and full-time students . The committee knows times are hard and has decided to ask for three months up front rather than the whole year ’ s payment , and then offer a choice of monthly or quarterly payments after that . It does include unlimited air fills , as we have our own compressor .
You are an early adopter of the new Discovery Diver course , how ’ s that going ?
It ’ s been popular , but younger divers have some unique difficulties . It ’ s good that our pool training sessions finish at 9pm ; not too late when there ’ s school the next day . We have had to invest in smaller kit : five smaller second-hand BCDs for the pool and two new ones for open-water use . We have some 10-litre cylinders so that the younger trainees carry less weight in their early training .
What about dive suits ?
When they progress to open water , parents accept the cost of hiring equipment such as drysuits , which is an additional expense but is a more economical option for early experiences - and growing kids . Once they commit to continuing with diving , even younger members are expected to invest in the more-pricey elements of scuba gear .
How do you adapt your training for younger members ?
Theory and skill sessions are taken more slowly . Each lesson is completed over two hour-long sessions . Theory training is done with BSAC materials interspersed with video clips from club trips to give visual examples of what divers can see underwater . Additional sessions and extra one-to-one sessions are used where needed , particularly with drier subjects such as learning to use dive tables . Learning is constantly reinforced by practising basic skills in addition to the BSAC lesson plans . We ’ ve also needed to be flexible with additional catch-up sessions to fit in with other demands on youngsters and their parents . One family has three children training and another two waiting in the wings . The parents are looking to join too ; they ’ ve done some diving in the past and want to dive as a family in the future .
What processes do you have in place for the children ?
Parents are always expected on site where students are under 16 . We also have two safeguarding officers , one male , one female , and both are checked via BSAC ’ s Disclosure and Barring Service ( DBS ) for England and Wales scheme , at no cost to the club . All club instructors are also being DBS checked , following BSAC guidelines .