South Ayrshire Council News

The South Ayrshire Swim Team, who have achieved significant success at national level, have their sights firmly fixed on the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. To help them reach their goal the Team is entering into a new partnership operating agreement that will help them to gain further success in future years.

Councillor Margaret Toner, Depute Leader of the Council and Portfolio Carrier for Community Services said: “The South Ayrshire Swim Team are well respected by fellow swimmers locally, across Scotland and beyond. The young people train extremely hard, are very dedicated and have reaped the benefits of their efforts by winning national titles.

“With the excitement of the Commonwealth Games coming to Glasgow in 2014 I am sure that some of the Team members will have their sights fixed on taking part and winning medals. I believe that the Team will go from strength to strength in the future with the new operating agreement that will open doors for them to apply for funding elsewhere. I look forward to seeing South Ayrshire swimmers take part in the Commonwealth Games.”

Membership of South Ayrshire Swim Team, which currently stands at around 200, is open to all young people depending on merit. Many new members join as a natural progression from the Council’s Learn to Swim Scheme.

The Team is run through a partnership agreement that has been in place for 6 years and made a significant contribution to the development of swimming in South Ayrshire and Scotland.

Following discussions between the South Ayrshire Swim Team and the Scottish Amateur Swimming Association a three year partnership agreement has been reached that will be mutually beneficial to everyone. The main advantages are:

• The Team will be granted free access to Council swimming pools for the Swim Teams regular coaching sessions saving them approximately £20,000 per year.
• The Scottish Amateur Swimming Association will contribute £10,000 a year to support the activities of South Ayrshire Swim Team who will use this funding to directly engage a Swimming Coach.
• South Ayrshire Swim team may be able to use a financial contribution of £10, 000 as means of drawing in additional resources from other funding agencies.