Kids anxious as Corrimal Swim Club left in limbo by council contract delays

Amid growing concerns among the membership of the club, which has operated since the 1970s, more than 100 people met at the pools on Saturday to show support for their coach Tracey Waters.

Swim club president Dave Swan said Ms Waters had run swim coaching at Corrimal pool for about 30 years, and had become an irreplaceable part of the club.

Her business, Corrimal Swim Squads Pty Ltd has had the rights to run swimming lessons, coaching and other lane hire arrangements at the council pool through a licence which is renewed every four years.

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The latest term expired in April and, with the licence still not finalised, club members are concerned someone else may get the rights to operate from Corrimal Pool.

Mr Swan said Ms Waters' business and the club had been operating alongside one another for decades and could not exist separately.

"It's been a marriage made in heaven," he said.

"We are separate entities, but Tracey Waters is Corrimal Swim Club's coach, and she has built this into what it is today.

"My members are saying, 'well if she goes, we go'."

Ms Waters and her business partner Kylie Woods, who also hold the licence to operate the kiosk and cash collection services at the pool, have declined to talk to the Mercury amid ongoing negotiations with the council.

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However, with its future in limbo, the club is swirling with rumours.

Mr Swan said numerous members had approached him to say the council was in talks with another swim school, which they said had had outbid Ms Waters' business for the coaching licence.

"I asked 156 kids and their mums and dads what happens if Tracey doesn't get the tender, and they all said 'we'll go wherever Tracey goes'," Mr Swan said.

"Which means the swimming club as it is now, competing at the level it is competing at, will fold."

"We know this process goes on every four years and that the council doesn't involve the swimming club, but we think this is the one organisation they should be talking to."

It is not unheard of for the council to remove a long-standing operator as it re-negotiates licences: in 2016, the operators of the Wollongong Mall markets lost their bid to continue running them after 14 years.

Back then, local operator Foragers won the right to run the popular Friday markets, and then in 2021, the council changed operators again in favour of a Sydney-based market provider.

A Wollongong council spokesperson did not say whether they were aware of the swim club's concerns, but said licences were awarded through competitive process.

"Applicants are assessed against a number of criteria that ensure our process is fair, equitable and transparent," the spokesperson said.

"This approach ensures everyone has the opportunity to do business with Council, while also weighting local businesses."

They said the licence to provide swim coaching at various pools, including Corrimal Pool, closed on July 21.

"We are currently reviewing the submissions and will provide an update once this process has been finalised," the spokesperson said.

Bulli mother Peita Hawkins said she was distraught to hear that Ms Waters coaching and learn-to-swim programs were at risk of being ousted, as the coach had changed her 10-year-old son's life.

"Nash has dyspraxia, which is a motor planning disorder which means the messages from his brain to his body can get a little confused," Ms Hawkins said.

"He has always loved swimming, but lots of kids with his condition don't often get the chance to swim. But Tracey has worked with him to pick up on his weaknesses and has spent so much time, in and out of the pool, to help him achieve his goals."

Ms Hawkins said Nash had been a state representative for Corrimal Swim Club twice this year under Ms Waters' coaching.

"Every single one of these kids are put first, she knows all their strengths and weaknesses individually," Ms Hawkins said.

"I will have a heartbroken little boy if she can't coach him. He adores Tracey and she is someone he can trust and depend on and who has been a huge part of his life."

Separate to the concerns about the licence for coaching, the swim club says Corrimal Pool has been left in a state of disrepair, with the toddler pool closed for more than a year and the 25 metre pool also out of action.

"Our members have been asking me why this is happening, and they are worried the council is going to make a decision that will hurt the community because they need money to pay for the maintenance and repairs," Mr Swan said.

The council spokesperson said the licencing of the swim school was not connected to the ongoing operations of the pool and maintenance of its infrastructure.

"Council is committed to repairing the toddlers' pools and the 25m pool at Corrimal," the spokesperson said.

"We know these pools are really valued by the local community, and we want them to be open for swimming and paddling as soon as possible.

"The pools have been temporarily closed while we investigate an issue with the pipe that connects both pools.

"We have team members working at the pool to resolve the issue and will have further updates in the coming days."

The council said the two pools may have a "staged reopening".