Pool Rules, Regulations & Policies

The following rules and regulations are designed to ensure safe and healthy operation of the Hastings Community Education and Recreation Center Pool and to comply with the State of Michigan Regulations for Public Swimming Pools. Parents are requested to emphasize to their children the importance of observing the rules and obeying the instructions of pool personnel. Please review these rules before visiting the pool. 

*Management reserves the right to refuse anyone entry or remove anyone from the facility temporarily or permanently for violating any pool rule, policy, or procedure. Rules are subject to change at the discretion of management.

GENERAL RULES & INFORMATION

Parents or guardians are responsible for supervising their children. Small children should remain within arm’s length of a responsible adult at all times while in the water and on the deck. A lifeguard’s role is surveillance of the pool, not to assist with the supervision of individual children or a group.

1. Only U.S. Coast Guard approved personal floatation devices (PFD) are permitted in the pool. Any patron wearing such a device is permitted in the shallow area of the pool up to the bulkhead and lane lines in the competitive end of the pool. Children wearing such devices must be accompanied in the water and actively watched in the pool by a parent or guardian (at least 16 years of age). Inflatable toys, rafts, and other floatation devices are not permitted. 
2. Goggles & diving masks that may cover the nose & face are permitted with the understanding that they may be removed in such a method that may damage them should an emergency situation occur where a head, neck or back injury is suspected from the wearer.
3. Non-swimmers or weak swimmers must remain in the shallow water unless they are in a class with an instructor. Entrance into the deep end requires successful completion of the Water Competency Sequence (Outlined in next section).
4. SWIMMING UNDER THE BULK HEAD IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED and will result in removal from the pool.
5. Only lifeguards and authorized staff are allowed on the bulkhead. 
6. Camera use is not permitted in the locker rooms.
7. The roped lanes are for lap swimmers only. Please do not enter the lanes unless you are swimming laps. 
8. Management is not responsible for the loss of personal belongings. Lockers are available for day use only. You must supply your own lock.
9. Eating, drinking (except water), and glass containers are prohibited in the pool area. (Exceptions may be made for special events such as swim meets.)

DIVING

1. Diving is permitted from the diving board only. No diving in the shallow areas.
2. Entrance into the deep end requires successful completion of the Water Competency Sequence:
   1. Step into the water from the side and totally submerge.
   2. Maintain position for one minute by treading water or floating (or a combination of the two).
   3. rotate one full turn and orient to the exit.
   4. Level off and swim on the front or back 25 yards.
   5. Exit the pool with out using a ladder or steps.
3. NO flotation devices are allowed in the diving well.
4. Only one person on the board at a time. Divers waiting will not proceed up the ladder until the diver enters the water.
5. Only use the ladder to access the diving board.
6. Divers may only bounce on the board one time. Dives or jumps must be performed forward, off the front of the board. No running dives, inward, reverse, or back dives, handstands, or cartwheels are allowed.
7. No sitting or hanging on the board.
8. The person in front of you must be at the side of the pool before you go off the board.
9. Diving from the side walls of the diving area is not permitted except at the discretion of the lifeguard.
10. The fulcrum is locked in place and may not be moved.

ADMISSION

1. The pool is open to persons who possess a valid membership or those who purchased a facility day pass.
2. Swimmers under the age of eight (8) must be accompanied in the pool at all times by an adult or guardian at least 16 years old, regardless of age, children needing assistance or wearing a PFD must be accompanied in the water and actively watched in the pool by a parent or guardian (at least 16 years of age).
3. Children ages thirteen (13) or under cannot be left alone in the pool without direct supervision from a parent or guardian (16yrs. or older) on the pool deck. Parents or guardians must remain on the pool deck and may not sit in the second floor observation deck.
4. Parents or guardians (16 yrs. or older) must actively watch their children. This means that reading, lying down, talking or facing away from the child is not permitted any time the child is in the pool or on the deck. During Preschool Swim, parents or guardians must remain in the water with their child at all times.
5. Same day re-entry will be allowed with daily paid admissions. No additional entry fee is required. 
6. Re-entry credit will be offered if the pool is closed for an extended period of time (over 1 hour) and the patron has been at the pool less than 1 hour before the incident. Leave your name at the pool check-in desk before leaving the facility to receive a credit.
7. Contact the manager if there are special accommodations required for persons with mobility or any physical concerns.
8. A household for family pass purposes is limited to 6 guests per pool visit.

BEHAVIOR

1. Hanging on the ropes, running, rough housing, chicken fights, sitting on shoulders or back, dunking, spitting water, jumping over or near another swimmer or any other behavior affecting the safety and comfort of other patrons will not be tolerated.
2. The use of profane or abusive language and/or fighting will not be tolerated and is grounds for immediate ejection from the CERC.
3. Please do not talk to or distract lifeguards while they are on duty, unless there is an emergency.
4. Lifeguards on duty have the authority to prohibit activities which, in their judgment, may be dangerous, put other patrons at risk or interfere with patron’s enjoyment of the pool and the facilities.
5. Persons suspected of being under the influence of alcohol/drugs will be refused admittance to the pool or asked to leave the pool immediately.
6. Loitering in the locker rooms is prohibited.

DISCIPLINARY POLICY

Based on the severity and/or repetition of the offense, pool management may either remove patrons from the pool immediately, or at its option, impose any of the following disciplinary actions:

• Warning by the lifeguard
• Sitting out of the pool for fifteen (15) minutes
• Ejection from the pool complex for the remainder of the day
• Suspension from the pool for a designated period of time
• Revocation of membership

HEALTH & SANITATION

1. A cleansing soap shower should be taken before entering the pool deck area.
2. Persons with communicable diseases, skin lesions, inflamed eyes or mouth, or ear discharge are not permitted in the pool.
3. Parents are encouraged to have children use the toilet before entering the pool and during adult swim.
4. Swim diapers are required if children are not toilet trained. It is suggested that tight fitting vinyl pants also be worn for added protection. Swim diapers are on sale at the CERC front desk. Swimmers may not wear swim diapers alone, they must work with an appropriate swimsuit as cover.
5. All diaper changing must be done on the changing station in the locker room, not on the pool deck or chairs. Diaper changing on the deck violates state health code, is unsanitary, and could spread germs and disease.
6. Spitting, spouting water or blowing the nose in the pool is strictly forbidden.
7. Proper swim attire must be worn. This is defined as a commercial swim suit with a built-in liner. Lightweight, non-restrictive shorts and shirts may be worn over proper swim attire. However, these may not be street clothes.
8. Religious Accommodations – a lined swimsuit is the required attire and may be worn underneath commercially approved full-body swim attire. The clothing material must be lightweight, such as nylon, polyester or lycra, so that it does not inhibit one’s ability to swim or support oneself at the water’s surface should the clothing become waterlogged or water laden.
9. Patrons requiring special accommodations that conflict with pool rules may request an exception with a written explanation by a physician. No exceptions will be granted if the condition affects the health of others using the pool.
10. If a pool patron requires the assistance of a floatation device as a modification for a qualified disability, the patron must request approval from the Pool Manager. Only Coast Guard Approved Personal Floatation Devices are permitted.
11. Swimsuits, clothes, and diapers must be changed in the locker rooms. No changing on the pool deck.

WEATHER / CLOSING POLICIES

1. Winter weather related closings and delays will be announced via local news outlets and the CERC facebook page. 
2. Severe Weather: Will result in the immediate closure of the pool and patrons will be directed to the designated shelter areas for the duration of the weather event. At the discretion of the manager, the pool may be closed for heavy snowfall.
3. Low Attendance: At the discretion of the manager, the pool will be closed as a result of low attendance.
4. Contamination: The pool will be cleared in the event of contamination. The closing period is dictated by the severity of the contamination. The Pool Manager will determine the length of time required based on Health Department standards.
5. Swim Meets: Use of the pool for swim meets trumps regularly scheduled open swim times. CERC staff will post open swim times on a regular basis. 

Lifeguards are on duty for your safety and the safety of those around you. The pool staff is trained to enforce these rules as well as monitor and correct behavior which they feel is inappropriate in an aquatics environment. Any and all of these regulations may be changed if it is deemed necessary to enhance the safety of our members and the facility.