All the instructors and management staff at Propel are wonderful! In the short one and a half years…read morethat our son has been enrolled at Propel, our son went from being scared of getting his face wet to now being able to do various techniques, such as freestyle, backstroke, flip turn, and tread water. Our son learning to swim has been one of the best investments as it is a lifelong skill to have that boosts confidence and ensures water safety.

Great swim instructors, highly responsive team, and my daughters have really grown in their comfort…read morearound the pool/water and excelled at lessons.

Im very discouraged to see that when MarTar moved locations, their Yelp account was completely…read moremoved as well, rather than simply changing the address. While it's good for MarTar, as all their many, many negative reviews stayed with the old account, it's not fair to parents who are looking to provide their children with the best, safest services available. With that being said, I would NEVER allow my child to be subjected to what he endured at MarTar ever again. (And even me as a parent) And my hope is to prevent other children from going through the same. Abuse is a cowardly act. Especially when the target is someone who can not fight back or even tell someone they are being abused. Add water and fear to the mix and it's just unthinkable. MY child went through that at the hands of MarTar, as well as other children whose parents are posting their reviews. I was able to copy and paste just one of my follow up reviews from their other account below, but parents... please research more. Look at the reviews they earned (on their previous account) that they have just escaped by a mere location change... Also, invest time to looking into the background of the people you are trusting with your children. I wish I had. ------ copy and paste of my follow up review------ (To see all their reviews, go back to their account at the old address) I would just like to share an update that I believe speaks volumes. We haven't been to MarTar for almost 2 years. I had to drive out to Columbia today and when I passed the Elkridge area on Route 100, my now 6 year old son (Who can now SPEAK - Thank God !) PLEADED, "NO SWIM SCHOOL! NO SWIM SCHOOL!" Nice job, MarTar. I hope his little face haunts you, as the memories of you obviously haunt him. How tragic that people trust you with their most precious thing, and you do this. On behalf of my child and all the other children who COULDN'T speak up... Shame on you.

Below is my previous review of Mar Tar at its previous location. While the location may have…read morechanged the owners have remained the same so please do your research. My family had an negative experience there that still haunts me. Just wanted to provide an update to my review with more information that might be useful to others. My children only attended Martar for two lessons but that was enough for me to see the company's lack of professionalism and to feel that the business was more about money and less about helping the special needs community. When I brought up my concerns about the instructor to one of the owners his initial reaction was to downplay my concern and make excuses. He did later come back and apologize, which I appreciated, but it was too little too late. The best service I received was getting a refund for my remaining lessons after describing in an email the reasons I would not be returning. Some of the email I sent is below and explains our issues with Martar. MarTar: I understand that it states in your Terms of Service regarding refunds that, "No monetary refunds will be issued. If it is determined after the first class that a student cannot successfully complete the session, the client may request a class credit to be applied to another MarTar Swim School lesson, class, or event for the participant only. Sorry, no transfer of fees to a third party is allowed." I appreciate your efforts to accommodate my child's needs by first switching My Son's instructor and later putting together a social story together to assist in his transition. While both of these accommodations did meet some of our needs they did not address the specific concerns we had with each instructor and how they interacted with my children. I feel that your instructors did not provide an "enriching swimming education that gives equal access for everyone to learn at their own pace and abilities". I do not feel that when an instructor raises his voice at my Son that he is being understanding of his current swimming "abilities" but instead is showing he is frustrated with my Son's fear of the water. In addition a swim instructor's comment that she made my child stop crying by saying she was going to "put him underwater" is also not in line with a school who boasts to be a "safe, compassionate learning environment". On the registration form I made it very clear that both of my children were very fearful of the water, getting water in their eyes and had never had swim lessons. Thus I would expect your staff to be aware of this information before the first lesson and adjust their technique accordingly but this did not happen. Your website also states, "We specialize in teaching individuals with special needs, including children and adults with autism, down syndrome, ADHD, PDD, cerebral palsy and visual or audio impairments, how to swim by employing a variety of techniques including visual aids and sign language." In reading this statement I expected that your instructors would each have an basic understanding of how these disabilities can impact learning and they would adjust their teaching techniques to provide the best learning environment to each child. I do not feel your school met these stated promises in regards to my Son, even though I clearly stated on the registration form he has Autism. It is stated in the DSM-IV Fact Sheet that "People with ASD tend to have communication deficits, such as responding inappropriately in conversations, misreading nonverbal interactions, or having difficulty building friendships appropriate to their age. In addition, people with ASD may be overly dependent on routines, highly sensitive to changes in their environment, or intensely focused on inappropriate items." My Son's difficulty relating and communicating with others makes new situations challenging and communicating difficult. Instead of being sensitive to these needs your instructor became frustrated when he would not follow directions and instead repeatedly yelled the direction at him until he was in a panicked state. While I am sure many clients have had wonderful experiences at your swim school I hope you can be understanding that our experience was not one of those. I felt I was promised a compassionate quality learning environment for my children but given quite the opposite experience.

I attend with a group that rents the pool. Before management changed, I would have rated this…read morebusiness highly. However, finding the lifeguard on their phone instead of watching the pool on numerous occasions has me saying, "Don't trust your kids to these people!" Today I reminded the lifeguard "The pool's over here." She apologized and said she had gotten a text. I DON'T CARE about her text. She has ONE job - to guard the lives of the people in that pool. Management has been notified on several occasions, but this unsafe situation has been allowed to continue. Edit to respond to Chris W. - Your response translates as, "We have no intention of doing anything more than we have already done in response to the feedback that has been offered privately." Emptor Caveat.

I was pretty nervous about signing my son up for classes here as all the reviews were horrid. But,…read morethey had an easy online scheduler and got back to me right away (both when signing up for my first session and again when I signed him up for my next set of lessons). I didn't hear back from Hood for weeks and all the classes at the Y booked up opening day. In the end, I figured I'd give KIDS FIRST a shot and if it didn't work out, oh well, lesson learned. However, we love it here! My son is only 8 months old, but it was important for me to have some one on one time with him and to grow up to be confident in the water. I will preface this with I don't expect much from a class for kids under 1. He's not joining a swim team anytime soon. All classes were started promptly and his instructor (Shannon) was great and seemed to really enjoy working with the little ones. Each class we do the same order of activities that introduce swimming on their stomachs and back and getting their heads in the water. It can get monotonous for me doing the same thing each week, but my infant loves it and routine is good for them. My main concerns were with reviews that it was cold in there. It is so warm! The pool is at 90 degrees and the temperature in the building is very warm, too. I always leave feeling hot and was refreshed when heading back out into the winter cold after our lessons. The second concern was about it being dim. The observation area is a bit dark, but the pool room, changing rooms, and restrooms are all very well lit. My son always leaves happy, healthy, tired and is excited each time we hop in the pool again. Bonus: if you are signed up with lessons for them you can come to an open "family swim" on Saturdays and Sundays for just $5 per person.

I'm an adult who can barely swim. Since starting in mid-September 2025, it has been phenomenal. I…read morehave learned many of the basics and have been given exceptional instruction to break my "bad habits". The instructors are all great. They will have you starting from where you are comfortable, but then push you to do better, as all great instructors/coaches should. Whatever stage of your swimming journey you may be at, British Swim School at Onelife Fitness if your next move. You won't regret it.

From the owner: British Swim School offers year-round swim lessons and water safety lessons for infants, kids, and…read moreadults, with learn to swim programs starting as early as 3 months. Located inside OneLife Fitness - North Frederick, we welcome both gym members and non-members to enjoy a convenient, indoor setting where swimmers build real water safety skills through our gentle, survival-first teaching approach. For more than 45 years, families have trusted our proven curriculum, small group swim lessons, and supportive instructors to help swimmers grow in confidence at every age and ability level. Private swim lessons are available at select locations. Start building lifelong water confidence today.

The children's swim classes here are wonderful! Both of my boys (3 & 5) loved the class and their…read moreswim instructor. The class size was very small, so all of the children got individual attention and instruction during the half hour session. I love that I got to watch their progress each week from the balcony! The pool is heated, so no chattering teeth like we had experienced at a nearby YMCA's swim class. At the end of the class, the teacher was able to tell us if they're ready to advance to the next level or should repeat the one they're in for more practice. We will definitely be signing up for classes again!

From the owner: YWCA York is a NAEYC Accredited, Keystone 4 Star Center that provides early education and nurturing…read morechildcare while encouraging each child's individual emotional, social, intellectual creative, and cultural needs.

DO NOT RECOMMEND. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY. Since…read moremid-December, this location has gone downhill fast. The pool is murky and questionable, the bathrooms are dirty, and overall cleanliness has clearly declined- a serious concern for a facility working with children. Management is nearly impossible to reach by phone, and communication is handled almost entirely by text. Jessica, in particular, has been rude and dismissive, providing misleading information instead of real solutions. Long-term staff are leaving at an alarming rate, which raises serious concerns about the new management. The staff is now mostly new and inexperienced. My children went from structured, effective lessons to watching instructors who don't seem to know what they're doing. At this point, I could teach the lesson myself just from observing. After over a year here, it's sad and concerning to see what was once a trusted, high-quality program turn into a poorly managed operation. Parents should be aware before enrolling.

The best swimming program I have encountered. This method builds up skills and confidance. My child…read moreloves going there and actually swims the whole swim lesson rather than sit on sideline waiting for others. Instructors are friendly & experience. They encourage students and are results oriented. They are very good with kids. We find it very convenient to reschedule whenever something comes up. iMuch better than county swim programs and way cleaner. Definitely worth the cost.

If you were planning to do any serious swimming, this isn't the place, especially not for the cost…read more The university has no swim team but to draw new enrollment allows the local high schools to use the pool for practice during peak hours every day -- even closing two hours early one day, packing the schedule for other teams and exercise groups. You won't be able to ever have a consistent schedule and will be waiting for open lanes.

A wonderful resource for the community! The pool is great, locker rooms are big and clean. I…read moreespecially appreciate the free parking pass. Membership fees are very reasonable, especially for seniors. Looking forward to pickleball lessons. Thanks, Shepherd U, for making the facility available to the public