WHILE the Diocesan School for Girls’ (DSG) Aquatics Centre will officially open in late October, an unofficial opening for the pupils took place on 6 August.
WHILE the Diocesan School for Girls’ (DSG) Aquatics Centre will officially open in late October, an unofficial opening for the pupils took place on 6 August.
A few teething problems, including a leak, meant finishing touches came to a halt as builders began to dig around the pool in search of the problem. The leak was found and DSG headmistress Shelley Frayne is hoping that the pool will be ready within a week or two for the return of the girls on Monday, 1 September.
At the opening, Frayne joined staff and pupils as they jumped into the pool in their pyjamas, “to celebrate our pool and a means of having fun,” she said, while adding that the water was “freezing”. While the heating system has been installed, it has not yet been switched on.
The pool measures 34 x 25 metres, which is an Olympic size water polo pool and is a short course swimming pool, sanctioned by Fina, the international swimming body. The fully-heated pool has 10 lanes and underwater hockey markings.
While the school does not offer underwater hockey, they hope to hire out the pool for underwater hockey matches, as well as to host inter-provincial and short course swimming events, so “the pool can help pay for itself”.
The pool also has an ozone filtration system so it requires only a minimum amount of chlorine.
Pool hire
The new pool is only metres away from the school’s hostels, offering a safe facility for the girls to use and Frayne hopes the pool will help attract swimmers and water polo enthusiasts to the school.
Frayne says the old outside school swimming pool will be used as a recreational pool for the pupils, while the new Aquatics Centre is used for water polo, swimming and keeping fit. Frayne also hopes to offer water aerobics sessions, which will be offered as a class period to pupils.
The school is currently looking to employ a swimming coach and they will also get involved in community engagement by teaching disadvantaged people to swim.
While many community members are keen to jump into the only indoor heated pool in Grahamstown, Frayne says they will first see how much the DSG girls use the pool before opening it to the community. However, as Frayne says the school has a close working relationship with Rhodes, the school will consider approaches from Rhodes and DSG’s brother school, St Andrew’s College. “We are part of the community,” she said, adding that the school is looking at ways to accommodate members of the community, especially during holiday periods.
The official opening of the Aquatics Centre will take place during Balloon Week on 20 October. Contractors are still working on the landscaping around the pool which will include a parking area. Frayne also hopes to move the school gym into the Aquatics Centre.
“Thanks go to Peter Ellis, the engineer who has worked on the project from beginning to end and to Steve Emslie who has been employed by the school as contractor and now the school estate manager," Frayne added.
Want to know more?
Diocesan School for Girls website
