a. LCSC Program 

The Orca’s swim program is aligned with the school year and runs from September 1st to June 30th of each year.  Participants are welcome to join at any point in the season.  Once registered, team members are assigned to an instructional group, which is under the supervision of a certified coach.  Factors influencing initial group placement include swimming proficiency, ability to follow instructions and ability to train at the level of the rest of the group.  Adjustments to placement will be at the coaches’ discretion.

A workout may consist of dry land training, deck time and pool time.  Deck time is an important part of each session, which gives the swimmers time to stretch and gives the coach time to talk to the swimmers before they enter the water.

Group placement is based on many factors (assessment, testing results, and coach instinct).  Finding the appropriate group for each swimmer is the goal and challenge of LCSC coaches.  Some of the main factors driving group placement are the following:

• Training Ability (fitness level)
• Stroke Technique
• Maturity (chronological age, physiological age, and emotional development)
• Commitment (practice attendance, meet participation, priority to the sport)

Testing protocol and an assessment for newcomers are the main tools used in this process.  As the swimmer’s ability to train grows, their need for change happens

i. Program Swim Groups & Fees:

LCSC’s Swim Program is a training program designed in accordance with the entire duration of the swim season. As such there is no pro-ration or reduction of fees for partial attendance. 

Swim Fee’s are set and approved by the Board of Directors on an annual basis as part of the development of the overall Budget and finalized in preparation for September’s registration. 

All Swim Fees are due and payable at registration and families are offered the choice to pay whole amount at the time of registration or pay monthly via automatic billing over 10 months. If monthly automatic billing is chosen September swim fees will be payable upon registration.

LCSC is a non-profit society and as such must carefully govern our funds in order to operate the Club for the benefit of all members in a financially sustainable manner, therefore we must adhere to strict rules regarding payment of all fees and other expenses. 

Member accounts are required to be kept up to date. All monthly billing takes place on the 1^st of each month and is due and payable upon receipt of billing. 

Outstanding Accounts: Any accounts with an outstanding balance more than 21 days in arrears will result in an immediate suspension of swimming privileges. This suspension will be communicated to the swimmers parent or guardian NOT through the swimmer. Communication between LCSC and families is highly encouraged if an overdue account occurs in order to resolve the matter as soon as possible and prevent suspension of swimming privileges.

SWIM GROUPS 2024-2025 Click here to See Sample of Program Fee

Registration and Payment 

Our Swim Season typically begins in September, following the annual maintenance closure at the Frank Jamieson Community Centre - 510 6^th Avenue.  

Any new swimmers may first try-out the club with permission from the Head Coach, depending upon space availability in the swimmer’s appropriate swim group. The Head Coach can be reached at mailto :coachbrandon@yahoo.com.

Program fees are set for each group and there will be no reduction in fees for part time attendance or partial months. LCSC Registration and all payments now take place online on our website.

Summary of Fees:

a. September fees will include:

• Annual Registration Fee of $110.00 (per swimmer)
• Annual Swim BC Insurance Fee (per swimmer and determined by SwimBC)
• Swim Fees: Annual Program Fee OR First month applicable Program Fee (per swimmer)

b. Other fees charged to your account throughout the year:

• Annual AGM Fee of $75.00 billed on October 1st (refunded upon recorded attendance)
• Annual Swim Challenge Fundraising Fee of $100.00 on March 1^st
• Annual Raffle Fundraising Fee of $100.00 on May 1^st
• Swim Meet Fees when participation is requested (see Swim Meet & Entry Fees below)

All fees are billed to the members account and can be paid by etransfer or credit card. LCSC members are encouraged to use etransfer where possible to reduce credit card transaction fees. If you have concerns around payment please email ladysmithchemainusorcas@gmail.com. A credit card, pre-loaded Visa card or a Visa debit card (must have 'Visa' on it) will be required to be entered for each account for billing and payment of outstanding LCSC fees. Please see your financial institution to enquire about a Visa debit card.  American Express credit cards are not accepted.

i. Swim BC Annual Insurance Fees:

The SwimBC Seasonal registration fees and insurance are posted by SwimBc each year.  These fees are regularly reviewed by Swim BC and will be available prior to the start of the swim season.

More information on all Swim BC Policies and Procedures can be found in the 2023-2024 Swim BC Registration Information Package here: https://swimbc.ca/ 

c. Fundraising and Volunteer Commitment

LCSC is a non-profit organization. As with all other non-profit societies Fundraising is a necessary part of LCSC as a significant portion of the club budget is raised through fundraising initiatives. It is important to note that LCSC is unique in its size and location and as such we are restricted in our numbers but must incur the same operating costs – and some that are higher - of other much larger Clubs.  

Thus, LCSC makes every effort to operate our Club in a financially sustainable manner while striving to meet the needs of our Members. To do so we rely each year on the volunteering and fundraising to support our Members goals and maintain our Club functions.

NOTE: The LCSC fundraising obligation is mandatory and must be satisfied. Any swimmer that withdraws at any time from the Club prior to the end of the season is not exempt from this obligation however the total amount of any remaining outstanding fundraising obligations will be calculated (prorated based on the number of months active membership and the TOTAL fundraising amount left outstanding) and billed to the withdrawing members account. Any decision regarding withdrawals and fundraising obligations will be at the sole of the Board of Directors.

Example:

Notice given on March 1^st for April 1^st.
Total fundraising outstanding at April 1^st: $100
Months of active membership: Sept – April = 7 months

$100 x .70 = $70.00 Fundraising fees billed to members account.

LSCS holds a minimum of two mandatory fundraisers per season:

1. Annual Swim Challenge: $100.00 per swimmer is billed to all accounts on March 1^st of each swim season and is required to be paid by the swimmers family. The swimmer then collects pledges and donations to raise money for the Club. The swimmer retains $100 of the pledges and donations raised and donates any funds in excess of the $100 amount to the Club. This allows the family to cover their initial cost of the fundraising by collecting donations and pledges and is a motivating opportunity for all of our swimmers to swim to raise money for the Club. There are prizes for the top three fundraisers.
2. ​​​​​​​Annual Lottery: $100.00 per family is billed to all accounts on May 1^st of each swim season and is required to be paid by the swimmers family. Books of lottery tickets each are distributed to each family to be sold. Any sold or unsold tickets are handed in on the required due date so that the draw can be completed. If the family has sold their tickets in the amount of $100 (per book) they retain these funds. In this way we give our families opportunity to earn back their $100 by selling all tickets. Any family wishing and/or able to sell more than one book of tickets is welcome to do so to raise more money for the Club.

Additional Fundraising will be implemented at the sole discretion of the LCSC Board of Directors throughout the year as deemed necessary.

As a volunteer organization, support from the membership is required to meet all the needs of the club throughout the season.  Active parent participation, knowledge, and experience are the most valuable tool at the club’s disposal.  There are many opportunities to assist with events, fundraising, and regular club needs.  

Each family will be required to provide one retainer cheque for $200, post-dated to June 30^th and made payable to LCSC.  These cheques will be held in trust and only cashed if a family fails to fulfill the allotted volunteer hours.  In all other cases the cheques will either be destroyed or if instructions received, cashed in and credited to the members account on June 30^th.  Each family will be required to provide at least 5 hours of volunteering throughout the season and volunteer opportunities will be posted for sign up on a regular basis.  Volunteer opportunities could include:

• Manning the grill at hot dog sales
• Driving a vehicle during a bottle drive
• Completing grant application
• Soliciting donations from sponsors
• Holding a seat on the executive board
• Setting up or taking down after events (swim challenge/potlach)

d. Withdrawal Procedure

One month’s written notice to the Registrar is required to withdraw from the club.  Notice must be given in writing, in person or via email, on or before the 5^th day of the month to be considered to have been received that month. Notice given after the 5^th day of the month will be considered to have been received on the first day of the following month, and the outstanding fees and fundraising amounts will be calculated accordingly.

Failure to provide notice will result in Member account charges of one additional month of swim fees and the corresponding prorated total annual amount of fundraising.

There are no refunds for partial months.  Please note that notifying the coach of withdrawal does not constitute notice to the club registrar.

e. Injuries & Medical Leave Procedure

Requests for medical leave must be accompanied by a Physician’s note and written request to LCSC Administration. Each medical leave request will be assessed on a case by case basis by the LCSC Board of Directors and the Head Coach.

The Head Coach has the authority to temporarily suspend or dismiss any swimmer or family from participating in practices where he/she perceives a swimmer is unfit to participate in practices and/or competitions due to injury or illness until a review and decision has been made on the matter by the Board of Directors.

When a swimmer wishes to return to the pool following an injury or other medically related occurrence they are required to provide a Physician’s note stating the swimmer is fit to return to participation in practices and/or competitions AND a decision made by the Board of Directors in consultation with the Head Coach to allow the swimmer to return. The swimmers member account must also be in good standing and all information up to date.​​​​​​​

f. Equipment

All swimmers will be provided with one Orca team t-shirt upon registration.  This shirt should be worn to all competitions and sanctioned team events.  Each swimmer requires swim goggles and an appropriate swim suit.  A swim cap is optional but recommended for all swimmers with longer hair. Please speak with your Coach if you have any questions relating to swimwear and/or equipment.

Each season Team Aquatics supplies our Club with a discount card also known as the ‘Shark Card’. This enables our members to receive a discount on all Team Aquatics merchandise online and at the Swim & Fitness Shop at the Nanaimo Aquatics Centre: 741, Third Street, Nanaimo B.C. Each Season on September 1^st this membership card is available for download on our website under the LCSC Member Info tab.

g. Swim Meets

The Orcas Swim Team is a competitive swim team and regularly participates in swim meets across the island. Swimmers could be competing in freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, backstroke, individual medleys, and relays at designated meets. 

It is each Members responsibility to familiarize themselves with swim meet procedures through our website and other resources such as the Swim BC website. Please speak with your Coach if you have any questions regarding Swim Meets.

i. Swim Meet Participation & Entry

Members will be notified of potential swim meets and upcoming deadlines by email through the website and email. It is the Members responsibility to advise the Head Coach of their intent to participate and complete the ‘Attend/Decline’ process for each event on the LCSC website. 

The Head Coach will determine, in consultation with the swimmer/swimmer’s family when a swimmer is ready to compete and to which events the swimmer will be entered. The Head Coach is responsible to complete swim meet entries to the event once participation has been indicated by the Member.

ii. Swim Meet Fees

• Meet Fees: Swim Meet participation requires Members to pay Meet Fees for each Event. Meet Fees will be billed to each Members account upon entry into the event.  These fees are set by the host club and outlined in the meet entry fees posted to the website.  All Swim Meet Fees, Scratch Fees and any other related fees are payable upon receipt of billing to each Members account. LCSC must pay the host Club for all meet fees prior to the Event on behalf of all swimmers in order for our Club to participate. The Club’s participation in swim meets is dependent upon these meet fees being paid in a timely manner. 
• Scratch Deadline: A scratch deadline for each meet is posted in the meet package by the host Club. If you need to scratch (withdraw) your swimmer from a swim meet you must notify the Head Coach 48 hours BEFORE this scratch deadline in order to allow sufficient time for LCSC to scratch the swimmer in the system. If sufficient time is not given to the Coach to scratch a swimmer from a meet the LCSC is charged a Scratch Fee and this fee will be charged to the Member account.

All Members are liable for payment of ALL entry fees and scratch fees if notice is not given to the Head Coach for withdrawal of participation a minimum of 48 hours (2 days) before the Scratch Fee deadline date. 

If notice of withdrawal from meet participation is given for a medical reason after the Scratch Fee deadline date has passed a written request for withdrawal and a physician’s note must be received by LCSC Administration from the Member. This notice will then be provided to the host Club and they will advise LCSC of their decision made in regards to any refund of entry fees to the Club. LCSC cannot request a host Club to refund fees without these documents.

h. Coach Meet Costs

LCSC currently pays for the expenses of our Coaches (mileage, accommodations, and meals) to attend swim meets with our swimmers. LCSC considers this attendance of utmost importance and benefit to our competitive swimmers and an essential part of our swim program. 

In years past LCSC Board of Directors found it necessary for the successful operation of the Club to cover the Coach Meet Costs by instituting a user pay policy, whereby the coach swim meet expense was divided amongst all participants attending the swim meet.

The Board of Directors reserves the right to re-implement this user pay policy if it becomes necessary at any time throughout the swim season.

i. Transferring to Another Club

All financial obligations to the Ladysmith-Chemainus Swim Club must be settled before the Registrar is able to approve a transfer to another swim club. This regulation is set by our governing body, Swim BC. This includes any fee due in lieu of appropriate notice of withdrawal from the team and any outstanding fundraising fees as outlined above.