The perfect age to learn to swim?

By Chantalle Edmunds BBC Tees

At Ashtree School's hydrotherapy pool in Billingham, 20 week old babies are taking swimming lessons.

The mums learning water activities to help the babies get used to water

The lessons, run by Water Babies, teach children from as early as 12 weeks up to the age of four.

According to Debby Watt who runs the classes on Teesside, babies have a diving reflex that means when they go underwater they instinctively hold their breath.

So the idea is, the earlier they start, the more water confident they will be.

"I got involved by taking my own daughter, Georgia," Explains Debby Watt

"She's now five, but when we started she was just a few weeks old.

"She absolutely loved it so we kept on going and after a few weeks I decided I'd train as an instructor.

"After teaching for two years I decided to start up classes in this area because there wasn't actually anything available."

Classes involve parents holding their children in the pool whilst an instructor co-ordinates the lesson.

Amazingly most of the babies seem quite happy for their parents to let go of them whilst they go under the water for a short period of time, to be pulled out and greeted with a loud hooray!

Advice

The classes take on babies as young as 12 weeks up to the age of four

The Amateur Swimming Association advise taking a baby swimming to an adequately heated and maintained public pool from the age of six months.

They also warn that swallowing too much water could affect babies' kidneys.

Other web sites say to avoid heavily chlorinated water as young babies skin is thin and may be sensitive.

But the main advice, if you do want to try taking your baby to swimming lessons, is to attend a class run in a hydrotherapy pool or warm water pool by qualified instructors, to make sure your baby is in safe hands.