The Star Diving Club

Star Diving Club Guildford

Welcome to Star Diving Club

We are a springboard and highboard diving club in Guildford, Surrey.

Our programme is based at Guildford Spectrum.

We are affiliated to Swim England, our national governing body, through Swim England South East Region and have SwimMark accreditation.

Whether you are a complete beginner or have some previous experience, you are welcome to join us.

Catering for all abilities we run a variety of weekly sessions in term-time six days a week (not Saturdays).

Want to start diving?

For more information, to arrange a term-time taster or to book a class, please email membership@stardiving.org

We run a variety of term-time sessions catering for all levels, six days a week.

Important: everyone must be able to swim 25m and be comfortable in deep water without goggles.

Autumn term dates

The autumn term runs from Monday 5th September - Sunday 18th December.

There are no lessons in the half-term week: Monday 24th October - Sunday 30th October.

Update: due to diving board maintenance taking place on Tuesday 15th November, there will be no diving that day and the pool will be closed.

View or download the term-time overview below.

Autumn Term Overview 2022.v1
Overview (Autumn 2022).v1.pdf
Adobe Acrobat document [599.9 KB]

Winter club competition 2022

Our next club competition will be a Christmas-themed event to be held at Guildford Spectrum on Saturday 3rd December (3pm - 7pm).

It will be a fun meet for all our members, even if you are a newcomer. It is an opportunity to show your family and friends what you have achieved. The aim is to enter the world of competitions in a fun, friendly and relaxed environment.

To enter, download the invitation/booking form below and email it completed by the closing date (Wednesday 30th November) to membership@stardiving.org

An e-programme with event-specific timings will be circulated 24/48 hours before the competition.

SDC club competition invitation (Dec 2022)
SDC club competition invitation December[...]
Microsoft Word document [45.0 KB]

South East Regional Awards 2022

Congratulations to our club president Andy Hewat who has been named 'Volunteer of the Year' at this year's Swim England South East Regional Awards.

For those who didn’t know, Andy was a former head coach of the club - as were his son and daughter - and he has been our president since 2018.

He is regional diving manager and regularly volunteers at all the national and British competitions, playing vital roles behind the scenes in technology, recording and live streaming.
South East Region chairman Roger Penfold said that the selection panel were "very impressed" with the nomination received, which demonstrated Andy’s "inspirational commitment" to the sport. For this reason they felt he was a worthy winner.

Roger added: "The awards recognise and celebrate the incredible spirit of our aquatic community, especially evident during these challenging times. They showcase individuals and groups who create and foster the community spirit of aquatics."
As a regional winner, Andy will now go forward to be considered for the Swim England ‘Volunteer of the Year’. The national award ceremony will be held in the Great Hall at the University of Birmingham on Saturday 26th November.

Back to normal, back to the routine

As we ease through 2022, we hope to see the back end of the pandemic with a gradual, cautious return to normality. Nevertheless, our No 1 priority continues to be safety: both yours and ours. The situation is being monitored carefully, following UK Government and Swim England guidance. In England, face coverings are no longer required by law (save some healthcare settings). It is up to you where and when you want to wear one.

We are still headhunting a new club chairman. While the role is not regularly time-consuming, we need someone to lead the team and help Kirsty, Annika and others take the club forward. This involves liaising with internal and external stakeholders to ensure all our members' best interests are at the fore. If you are able to assist, please email Cooky – cooky@stardiving.org

Don't forget that our hunt for talented new divers at all levels is ongoing. If you are able to help us get the foot in the door at your local school to run a talent-testing programme, please email Kirsty - kirsty@stardiving.org

Congratulations to Justine and Camilla who have now completed their level 1 coaching qualification (theory and practical). You will start to see both of them more frequently on poolside, starting with the summer holiday courses and then to classes of their own in the autumn term.

Lastly for now, well done to our new divers of the term: Ava and Isaac. Both have impressed the coaches with their enthusiasm, focus and attitude at training, deservedly winning the termly accolade. Read about them - and the nominees - in the 'Divers of the Term' section.

Spring club competition

Thanks to everyone who took part in our spring club competition, the first internal meet we have been able to run for more than two years.
There was a good turnout across three-and-a-half hours of pool time, with a total of 73 divers competing across eight events.
For some, this was their first-ever competition while for others – notably some squad divers – it was good practice ahead of regional qualifiers.

Divers and parents in the first two sessions were also treated to dive shows from some of our skills, development, age group and elite junior divers.

The detailed results and a selection of photos from the meet can be found here. Also check out the 'Write-ups' section.

Coaches Wanted! Interested in learning to coach diving? Contact Kirsty here.