Active Leeds at Armley Leisure Centre
Armley runs the full Active Leeds pathway from six weeks old to adult, in a 25 metre pool plus a teaching pool, for £32.50 a month with no waiting list.
Who it suits
Leeds families who want one centre their child can stay at from baby classes through to Stage 7, and adults from 14 up who want to start or improve.
Why it stands out
- Lessons run 50 weeks a year, so the monthly direct debit buys close to a full year of teaching
- Active Leeds scrapped its waiting list; new starters book straight on after a questionnaire
- Separate 10 by 10 metre teaching pool with steps, plus a hydrotherapy pool and a pool hoist on the main 25 metre pool
- Changing Places facilities on both the wet and dry side, with H frame hoist tracking
- Assessments cost £5.00 per child and are required before booking into Stage 2 or above
Our verdict
For the money this is hard to beat in Leeds, and the accessibility kit at Armley is better than most council pools manage. Do not book if watching matters to you. Parents of under eights have to stay in the building, but Active Leeds say a viewing area may not be available, so plan on an hour in a corridor. Worth knowing too that the monthly price jumps to £49.50 at Stage 8, which is a steep step if your child gets that far.
What it is
Armley is one of the Leeds City Council pools running the Active Leeds learn to swim programme, which starts with Adult and Baby at six weeks and carries on to adult classes with no upper age. Active Leeds is an STA approved centre delivering the Swim England pathway, and teachers hold a minimum level two qualification. The building has a 25 metre pool, a 10 by 10 metre teaching pool and a separate hydrotherapy pool, so the very small children are not learning in the corner of a lane swimming session.
Who should book
Families who want one place to stay put. The pathway runs Adult and Baby from six weeks, Adult and Toddler from eighteen months, Preschool from three, then Stage 1 from five, with an Adult and Non Swimmer class for three to six year olds who need more support. Adult lessons take anyone from fourteen and split into three stages, from a shallow end beginner class up to swimming 400 metres. At sixteen, juniors have to move across to the adult programme.
What stands out
The waiting list has gone. Active Leeds now use an online questionnaire to work out where you or your child should start, then you book directly, which removes the single most miserable part of getting a Leeds swimming lesson. The trade off is that a wrong self assessment is taken seriously. Anyone booked into the wrong class will not be allowed to swim and the membership is cancelled on the spot, so pay the five pounds for an assessment if you are guessing.
The verdict
Thirty two fifty a month for fifty weeks of teaching works out at well under a tenner a lesson, which is roughly half what the private schools in this directory charge. What you give up is watching. Under eights need an adult in the building, but Active Leeds are upfront that some sites have no viewing area, and Armley does not promise one. Teachers also will not discuss progress at the poolside, so you are relying on the Homeportal app for updates, and Active Leeds admit outcomes may not be updated every week.
More Active Leeds venues
All Active Leeds venuesLeeds' flagship sports centre runs the Active Leeds learn to swim pathway in a 50 metre pool that divides into three, alongside a diving pool with platforms up to 10 metres.