JM Robson Aquatic Centre welcomes Rainbow Club

Lithgow City Council’s JM Robson Aquatic centre recently endorsed the services of the Rainbow Club - a network of social swimming clubs offering personalised lessons to children living with a disability.

With Lithgow City Council becoming one of the first councils offering this service within the Central West, Mayor Ray Thompson noted “I am extremely pleased that Lithgow City Council has been able to assist in welcoming the Rainbow Club to our community.

“It is our priority to ensure that we do everything we can to meet the needs of our diverse community. The service opened with lots of happy faces and happy parents; this is what we are all about and it is fantastic to see.”

The Swim the Rainbow program has been specially designed to teach children with a disability using structure, reward and progress in a social, fun and supportive aquatic environment.

The swimming goals are aligned to the seven colours of the Rainbow (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet). When working on the basic goals, the lesson is structured around one teacher to one child (1:1). Once a child has mastered the basic goals, the lesson is expanded to include more than one child. Having more than one child in a lesson encourages social participation and introduces concepts such as taking turns, competing, winning.

Swim the Rainbow helps a child’s confidence increase as the individual attention can enable a child progress more quickly and many go on to participate in group lessons. As the rapport between teacher and child grows, this helps to eliminate either a fear of water or over-confidence in their abilities around no water (no fear).

Lithgow Mayor Thompson added “we aim to do everything possible to continue supporting these valuable activities within our community. This service offers an opportunity for children to feel safe in and around water and it is an amazing opportunity to network with other parents and caregivers. I encourage all those interested to attend and I thank all those who are involved in running this program.”

JM Robson Aquatic Centre will be hosting the Rainbow Club every Sunday from 9am to 12pm and entry fees are waived for participants of this program. With spaces still available, this is a wonderful opportunity for children living with disabilities in the community to join in an inclusive group activity, have fun and learn to swim.

For more information on The Rainbow Club go to myrainbowclub.org.au/our-programs/

More information on JM Robson Aquatic Centre at facebook.com/JMRobsonAquaticCentre/

Image courtesy of The Rainbow Club