broom swim school
Broom Swim School is a privately run family business, based in the gardens of
The Grange and is run by Sallie and Alice Walters. The team at Broom always
maintain the best standards of teaching and cleanliness, with organised,
efficient and professional staff. Broom also has the warmest water locally, set
at a balmy 31.5°C. The story of Broom Swim School starts in 1975 when Sallie’s
parents, David and Gillian Burden, moved to The Grange and discovered, within
it’s overgrown garden, an ornamental Victorian fish pond, complete with
pondweed, fish and frogs! Having fished out all the occupants, the pond was
converted into an outdoor family swimming pool. In 1986 Sallie returned from
London and its office jobs to start up her own business. Having always been a
very keen swimmer, competing for the Avon Neptunes in Stratford, Worcester City
and various school clubs. Sallie took her ASA Preliminary Teachers Certificate
at Crystal Palace, and spent the summer teaching locals, relatives and other
unsuspecting people to swim in the family’s outdoor pool. The old wood sheds
were converted into changing rooms, and ever eager punters had to race across
the lawn, towel in hand, to plunge into the relatively warm water. Once Sallie
was fully qualified as an ASA Level 2 Teacher and RLSS Lifeguard, the pool was
enclosed within a wooden, log cabin style building. The official opening day was
on Saturday 2nd April 1988, when more than 250 people tramped around the pool
house and garden, and more importantly, booked lessons and sessions in the pool.
In 2009 Sallie’s eldest daughter, Alice, started to work at the Swim School
part-time as a fully qualified lifeguard. A keen and competitive swimmer
herself, she swam at competition level for Stratford Sharks and school, and then
qualified as an ASA Level Two Swimming Teacher. Alice’s love of sports led her
to study Sport & Social Sciences at the University of Bath, and after a stint
working in London for the 2012 Olympic Organising Committee, she found herself
being drawn back to Warwickshire life. Alice now works full-time at the Swim
School teaching and running the office with Sallie; and has become the third
generation involved in the family business, alongside Sallie’s brother Angus
Burden who is our Head of Maintenance. In November 2017, Broom Swim School was
honoured and thrilled to be awarded “Swim School Of The Year” at the National
Swim England Awards held at Birmingham University. The award means the world to
us and our team, and we have dedicated this to the late David and Gillian
Burden, without whom there would be no swimming in the garden at Broom.
