Month: Mar 2020

Small but perfectly formed: Mendip Farm Pool is swimming with kids, at its best

We were lucky enough to win a competition and have the opportunity to try out the lovely new Mendip Farm Pool this week, and what a pleasure it was.

Mendip Swim has just launched over there, running a variety of fun swimming sessions and crash courses. The pool itself is pretty tiny (it actually used to be a private pool but the family has decided to open it out to the public as it wasn’t getting enough use). They’ve installed a couple of showers and changing rooms and created a really lovely, relaxed environment that’s perfect for introducing little ones to the water.

What’s more, they run supervised sessions where a trained swimming teacher (a really friendly, patient and encouraging lady called Debbie) is in the water ready to help guide, play and get children moving with a nursery rhyme or a simple game. It’s also super handy if, like me, you have more than one child in tow! They also have a bunch of toys and floats on hand to encourage water play.

These supervised swimming sessions are held on Monday mornings during term time. There are three separate sessions running 9:30-10am, 10-10:30am and 10:30-11am and the price is £6 (for one adult and one child). Given the small size of the pool, spaces are limited to 5 couples (a couple being one parent and one child) so there’s no overcrowding and plenty of space for you to float around comfortably. As we were competition winners, I was allowed to bring an extra child along for the session, and this is possible generally, but you’ll need to contact Mendip Swim beforehand to ensure that they can accommodate the extra numbers (if there’s space, the cost for one adult and two children would be £9). Extra adults are allowed to come in and sit on the side but just be aware that space is very limited.

As well as sessions for children, Mendip Swim runs adult only sessions on a Monday too (9-9:30am). In an ideal world, I’d be there every week!! Give it 3 years…

Check out the Mendip Swim Facebook page for other activities, including Mermaid swimming classes! The pool can also be privately hired.

I would highly recommend booking in for a swim here. It’s as good as swimming with children gets: the water is warm, it’s nice and clean, there’s plenty of space, there’s someone on hand to offer advice and encouragement, and it’s super relaxed so you don’t leave feeling rushed and flustered! We’ll be going back, for sure.

The pool is located on the Old Down Business Park, BA3 4SA (the home of Mendip Self Storage). Head up the driveway and you’ll see a car park. Park up and next to the Mendip Self Storage building to the left, you’ll see the pool sign pointing to the right. Walk round the corner and you’ll see the pool nestled between two buildings. If in doubt, someone at Mendip Self Storage can point you in the right direction!

Apex Park: A play park and a seaside walk all rolled into one

Although we’ve lived in Somerset for almost 6 years, I often forget how close we are to the sea! Early last month, when we had a (small) glimpse of sunshine before the storms, I took the girls on a little day trip to Burnham-on-sea/Highbridge, to visit Apex Park. The weather may have taken a chilly turn and the Not So Tiny One may have been in a teething grump but the park was so great that we refused to let our enthusiasm wane and pushed on through (for a long as we could, anyway). I’m so glad we did as there is so much to explore there. We’ll certainly return on a sunnier day when all of our party is in more favourable spirits!

So, what’s there? Free parking for starters, right on site. There are also toilet facilities and a small kiosk serving snacks that’s open in high season (the kiosk wasn’t open on this occasion but the toilets, thankfully, were). Adjacent to the car park is a beautiful large lake with lots of ducks and swans (and, I hear, plenty of other wildfowl in warmer weather). There’s a tarmacked path that runs round the whole diameter of the lake – it’s accessible for prams and, although it says “no cycling,” we took the Little Big One’s balance bike and she scooted alongside us and had a great time. I’ve mentioned before that I’m always on the lookout for great places to take the bike and this was ideal.

The play park is fantastic. There’s an enclosed area for pre-schoolers which kept my girls entertained and there’s a larger park aimed at slightly older children complete with scramble nets, climbing frames and a slide that’s big enough for 2 or 3 kids to go down at the same time (or 2 kids and a mummy!!) There’s also a skate park, so something for all ages.

The best bit about this park is the variety. We took the lakeside circular walk which takes in the lake, the ducks and the play park. There’s also a woodland trail, a wildflower area and the piece de resistance – a waterside walk (again accessible for prams and bikes) that leads along the river Brue to the southern end of Burnham sea front (by the sailing club). That’s right, you can see the sea! For us, who had basically been in hibernation since early December and were feeling starved of fresh air, this was a real coop. I can only imagine that a trip in the spring/summer would be delightful!

This excursion was part of a wider research project to find the best parks around Somerset/Wiltshire so keep your eyes peeled for another park-based blog post coming soon.