Franchise opportunities


With humble beginnings around a kitchen table in Yorkshire, we never imagined that we'd grow into the franchise business that we are today. Since we began in 2002, we've grown incredibly quickly. We now welcome over 52,000 children into warm water at around 560 local pools every week and our sessions progressively develop children’s water skills in line with their physical, mental and emotional development phases. This is delivered by over 70 franchisees, running more than 80 outlets across the UK, Ireland, The Netherlands, Canada, and China.

Water Babies franchisee’s come from a wide range of backgrounds, but they all share a passion for giving children the best start in life. Here’s just some of their stories…

Some facts about us

  • We teach over 50k babies and toddlers every week  
  • We have offices in 6 countries including China, Canada, Germany, Ireland, The Netherlands and the UK
  • We have our own purpose-built swim centres in China - and we’re building more!  
  • Leadership and Culture British Franchise Association award winner in 2020
  • We wrote the first (and only) British Standards for pre-school swimming  
  • Placed #16 in Elite Franchises Top 100 Franchise Businesses in the UK for 2022
  • We created the first Aquatic diploma for prefundamental swim teaching  
  • Our Head Office has been awarded gold for Investors in People 2019 
  • We are campaigning through Children's Alliance to elect a Cabinet Minister for Children to ensure they have a voice at the highest level  
  • We have over 600 swim teachers who are the best at what they do!  
  • We take over 250k underwater photos of babies and toddlers every year 

Ready to learn more?

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The Benefit of Franchising

As a franchise owner, you'll have all the autonomy and excitement of running your own business, with the support of our head office team, your dedicated Franchise Partner, and the mutual support of the rest of the franchise network. We are the best in the industry, so you can feel confident that your business will thrive. Our aim is for every franchisee to be swimming at least 1,000 customers per week, generating excellent profits and a great return on your investment.

Award Winning Franchise

We are proud of the work we do and it’s always great to be recognised through the many awards we have received throughout our history. Alongside winning bfa Franchisor of the Year in 2016, we’ve recently won awards with What’s on 4 Kids, the bfa and Loved By Parents

We believe strongly in ethical franchising and are full members of the British Franchise Association. We also believe that it is our people that make the difference and that being part of the Water Babies family should be rewarding. That’s why we have received the Investors in People Gold standard.

Ready to learn more?

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Becoming a Water Babies Franchisee

Not only does a new Water Babies franchisee have the strength of our brand, but they also receive all the equipment, tools, technology, and marketing they need to make their business successful. From the very start of their journey, when they make an enquiry, Water Babies provides world-class support and training. The team is on hand with an 8-phase launch plan, including 285 steps intertwined throughout, supported by our Project Management team.

Water Babies’ rigorous specialist baby swimming teacher training programme has been developed in collaboration with Swim England, the national governing body for swimming, and will qualify franchisees as one of the world’s best-trained baby swimming teachers. Ours are the only baby swimming teachers who can obtain this prestigious qualification, which is the highest-level qualification available in early years swimming.

Together we’ll make sure that you’re ready to take on the challenge and continuously support you on your journey as franchise owner.

Paul, the Water Babies Founder, explains in more detail what we look for in our franchisees.

Investors in People

We’re chuffed to have been awarded the Platinum Investors in People accreditation after winning Gold for two years running, proving our commitment to the people who work here.

Our culture centers on supporting people to deliver success and be the best they can be. We're passionate about our purpose and work with drive and energy to fulfil plans for growth and support our franchisees across the world. Find out more. 

 

We have a business model that works.

If you're keen to explore what it is to be a Water Babies franchisee, we'd love to hear from you.

Get in touch