“We want our children to be able to save themselves” -Templemore campaign to reinstate swim lessons

Members of the Templemore community have started a social media campaign to save swimming lessons at the Garda Training College pool, we can reveal this week.

We Just Want to Swim -Templemore was set up by Deirdre Ryan on Facebook and Twitter to campaign for the reinstatement of the Friday night children’s class as generations of children have learned to swim in the pool, but a recent decision by the OPW will put a stop to classes in future, she said.

“This has been part of the community of Templemore, the tradition of it for 60 years and the swimming classes for the last four decades, and we are really frustrated.

“I learned to swim there, and my eldest son, who is 11 learned to swim there, but my nine-year-old and my seven-year-old haven’t been given any access,” said Ms Ryan.

She added that two schools had access earlier this year but had to ‘jump through hoops’ to get it for a short amount of time.

“Again, we are not asking for the level of access we had before Covid. We are not asking for adult classes every day of the week. We are just asking for the Friday night class. “Previous OPW’s up to Covid from 1965 were fine with the level of public use of the swimming pool, and so were the college. Something has changed,” said Ms Ryan.

She pointed out there is a ‘great need’ for the classes in the community, with up to 800 children interested.

“There are three generations who learned to swim in that pool, and the support has just been unreal,” said Ms Ryan.

Swimming and Lifesaving

The college pool was opened in July 1965 by the Minister for Justice Brian Lenihan.

In his speech documented on the front page of the Tipperary Star on July 24, Mr Lenihan said he hoped garda recruits would use what they learned at the pool to help others.

“While I am confident that these new facilities will improve the competence of the Force to deal with emergencies involving risk of drowning, I should also like to think that when recruits here are scattered to the four corners of our land, each will bring with him not only a skill but also an enthusiasm for swimming and lifesaving which he will be anxious to impart to his local community.”

And for the past 57 years, that is what instructors at the pool did in Templemore. Several people, including retired guards, took responsibility for teaching local people to swim.

According to Ms Ryan, about 40 years ago, the community was asked to contribute a fee to access the classes, which they were very happy to do.

The classes ceased during the pandemic as the pool was closed. However, since the reopening, the last custodian has now retired.

When another instructor proposed to take over, they were refused permission by the OPW because the pool was being used for commercial use.

This has sparked anger and hurt in the community.

A parent of four in Templemore told the Tipperary Star that her children have learned to swim and trained to be lifeguards. But this decision means nobody else will be able to.

“We are very passionate about this in Templemore. My four kids have gone, and I’ve had two of them up to lifeguard training level,” she said.

She added that the Garda College is part of the town’s fabric, and this decision separates the college and the community.

“The Garda College is our history. It’s our town. People are so immersed in it, and yet they are turning their backs on the children of the town,” she said.

Response

Tipperarylive reached out to OPW and the Gardaí.

According to the response from them, the OPW put in place a licensing system following an audit in 2017.

Licences could be granted to schools and community groups for non-commercial use. The pool was closed between March 2020 and March 2022.

They said the pool may now close for the winter months due to low numbers of users and to conserve costs.

“The OPW was consulted as the owner of the property. Any decision around the day-to-day operation of facilities at the college is a matter for the Garda authorities, who must take account of issues relating to the efficient use of the property and related administration/running costs,” said an OPW spokesperson.

According to a response from a spokesperson for An Garda Síochána, the pool reopened temporarily in March of this year but has been closed since June. They said the pool would remain closed.

“Any decision to re-open the pool will primarily take into consideration demand by An Garda Síochána for training within the Garda College and the wider current energy cost implications,” said the spokesperson.

Tipperary TD backs the community campaign to reopen the pool at Templemore Garda College

Chopping and Changing

However, Ms Ryan rejects this response. She said they had been given several reasons, and the Friday night class would not impact the running of the college as the recruits are not there.

“So it’s like they are chopping and changing. It’s like there is total confusion between the OPW and the college, and in the respect, that seems to have been the case all along.

She added that the process of applying for a licence has been ‘chaotic’, and she doesn’t think anyone involved in the decision knows what to do. Ms Ryan and the Templemore campaign are calling for clarity around the situation.

“So we are pleading with the OPW and Chief Superintendent Garda Murray. We are pleading for them to just have a meeting with the Templemore community.

“Sit down and have a chat with them because they are chopping and changing their reasons for doing this,” said Ms Ryan.
Ms Ryan is asking the community to get involved by sharing the posts on We Just Want to Swim-Templemore and emailing local TDs and the Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, Partick O’Donovan.

“It’s so easy for a government department to make these decisions in their own office, which have serious implications for local communities that they have no connection with,” said Ms Ryan.

Ms Ryan said the decision was made without the local community and may have done so with certain ideas about how it works.

However, she said people in Templemore have ‘lived experience’ and know how to run the classes efficiently.

“It works so smoothly, and it saves lives. It saved my life on two occasions when I got into difficulty in the water. And that’s what we want, our children to be able to save themselves.

“It’s not fair to the community. We have given so much to that college, and the relationship has been so good, and this is the only thing they can offer us,” said Ms Ryan.