Mount Annan Leisure Centre (MALC) ran a campaign during 2020 to reduce stigma surrounding teens and adults learning to swim.
The Never Too Late campaign targeted migrant populations in the Camden area with limited water safety and swimming skills, as well as teens who may have missed out or lapsed in their swimming education.
The initiative led to a growth in teen enrolments from 36 to 66 and a five-fold increase in the number of adults learning to swim at the centre over a six-month period.
MALC and Camden War Memorial Pool are managed by the Y NSW on behalf of Camden Council.
The Y NSW is a registered National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) service provider, and since October 2020 enrolments of students with disabilities have grown by 300 percent at MALC.
Now Camden can now lay claim to one of the most inclusive pools in the country, following the leisure centre’s national award for excellence in inclusion.
The Australian Swim School Association award was accepted by Y NSW Aquatics Coordinator Ned Anson (pictured above) as part of the 2021 ASSA conference yesterday in a virtual ceremony.
Susannah Le Bron, the chief executive officer of Y NSW, said it was wonderful to see the MALC team’s unwavering commitment to accessibility acknowledged on the national stage.
“At the Y celebrating diversity is part of our DNA,’’ Ms Le Bron said.
“The past 12 months at MALC have been about ensuring that this commitment to inclusion is front and centre across our swim programs,” she said.
“Since becoming an NDIS provider, we are so proud to have exponentially increased our impact of our programs at MALC and Camden War Memorial Pool, teaching up to 50 neurodiverse infants, children, teens and adults to swim.
“We have witnessed profound benefits to these students and their families and our instructors have also enjoyed the benefits of increased education and awareness.
“I am so proud of the Mount Annan team, led by centre manager Ryan O’Loughlin and aquatics coordinator Ned Anson, for always keeping inclusion on the agenda and ensuring that the benefits, joy and lifesaving skill of swimming is accessible to all.”
