“We’ve been seeing Dean for a year or two now, & during this time our entire extended family has commented on how amazing the difference in my kids from when they first started to now – from too terrified to even go under water to swimming laps & learning technique within only a few weeks. Their lessons with Dean have been one of our most invaluable investments in our kids, not only for developing their swimming skills & confidence in the water but also for the safe space provided for kids who find the traditional settings & teaching methods impossibly difficult & hard to manage. We appreciate Dean so much for all that he does & has done, & he is an asset to the entire community (especially the disabled & neurodivergent community!).”

“A-mazing!! 5 stars! I would add more if I could! 🤩My 4 year old son used to be quite a nervous swimmer and now after his one-on-one lessons with Dean – you can’t get him out of the water! Dean is the most amazing swimming teacher we have ever met! He is instantly welcoming, always smiling and creates such a safe and calm environment!
Our son loves his lessons with Dean! He has so much fun, he doesn’t even realise he is learning valuable safety skills.
We can’t thank you enough Dean! We are so grateful to have found you and it’s an honour to call you our son’s swimming teacher.
Highly recommended!! Thank you so much Dean ☺️🙏🏼”

“My 5yo loves coming to her swimming lessons with Dean. After only a few lessons her confidence and breathing/kicking techniques have already improved. Dean is a great instructor, his calm and fun which helps to keep my child focused and willing to listen. Dean has a heated swimming pool where the lessons take place, with plenty of parking and a nice new bathroom. We highly recommend Deanos Nemos 👌🏾😊”

“Dean is absolutely amazing at teaching kids to swim. He has an incredible ability to help the kids feel calm and at the same time teach them the invaluable lesson of learning to swim. Dean has helped our son immensely with learning to swim, overcoming a lot of fear and challenges which has been amazing to watch. Would 100% recommend Deano’s Nemo’s to everybody.”

“Deano’s Nemos has been fantastic for our 5 year old ASD son, who is now making great progress with learning how to swim. Dean is great at what he does, giving clear verbal instructions and visual structure to each lesson, offering choice, plenty of positive affirmation and making it fun. Highly recommended.”

“My second son 3 years old started with Dean a few months ago and within only a few weeks he went from zero swimming skills to water confidence. He is thoroughly enjoying out backyard pool and I have been astounded at the pace at which he has picked up these new swimming skills. Dean also taught my first son with special needs, now 7 years old who also progressed rapidly and is confident in the water. Dean’s training was also the basis from which he has built the confidence to swim in the surf. Dean is a encouraging, calm and consistent, he builds trust with the kids and makes swimming fun. Excellent, clean and modern facilities. I cannot recommend Deano’s Nemos highly enough!”

“Finding Deano’s Nemos has been life changing for us! Our daughter who was 6 when she started with Dean had a long term fear of swimming, even getting her face wet would end in tears. We had attended other swim schools in the past and my daughter was never given the time and patience she needed to get there in her time, it sent her backwards. After her 2nd session with Dean she was putting her face under the water and blowing bubbles, after the 3rd and 4th she was doing freestyle and swimming the length of the pool! I honestly couldn’t believe my eyes! She loves to dive under the water and grab sinkies and to pretend to be a mermaid, I can’t explain how happy this makes me and I honestly don’t think we would have got to this place unless we had Dean encouraging her, making her believe in herself and respecting her processes with such patience and enthusiasm. Dean’s private facilities are top notch, brand new and comfortable. If you are lucky enough to secure a spot with Dean you won’t be disappointed.”

“My kids (ages 4 & 2) have been swimming with Dean for 6 weeks now and I could not recommend Deano’s Nemos enough. We have tried a few swim schools in our time and are so happy with the achievements my kids have made in their personalised, 1:1 (or 1:2 in our case!) swim lessons.
Extremely professional teacher, who makes swimming lessons FUN and motivating and has a calm, consistent approach. My son who was cautious around water, now loves swimming lessons. My daughter is now so excited to swim, after Dean has implemented many of her interests into her lesson. Dean has an excellent way of explaining the skill being taught, with the use of visual aides and positive encouragement.
Lovely, clean facilities which are easy to access and user friendly for a young family. Great communication and flexibility when booking.
Would highly recommend!”

“I honestly cannot recommend Dean highly enough. After nearly 3 years at a local swim centre making minimal progress, we saw marked improvements in our 4 year old son (who has high-functioning Autism) after just 1 private lesson with Dean. Only 4 lessons in and our once anxious boy who refused to place his eyes in the water and used to cling to his previous instructors for dear life, is swimming across the pool on his own for several metres, unassisted and without any floating devices, and duck-diving down to the bottom of the pool to retrieve diving rings – and loving every minute of it. Dean is a very special teacher – he has a natural affinity with children, particularly those who may initially find the water a challenging place to be. Dean is patient, kind, positive, flexible and enthusiastic. His lessons incorporate fun games and activities, and most of the time my son doesn’t even realise he is learning. He scaffolds his students beautifully and tailors each and every class to bring out the very best in them, while also knowing when to reduce supports and encourage risk-taking and consequently, growth. Most importantly, he believes in our son, and the confidence he has instilled in our boy as a result of the trust and rapport they have built in the short timeframe they have been together, is just incredible. Deano’s Nemos has been a complete game changer for our family. We are incredibly blessed to have Dean in our lives and cannot wait to see our son progress even further with each and every lesson. We cannot thank you enough, Dean. You’re an absolute legend.”

“We are so grateful to Dean and highly recommend Deano’s Nemos for swimming lessons. Our boys have made huge gains in the short time they have been learning with Dean. He has increased their confidence, swimming ability and skills in the water. We were thrilled when our four year old who wouldn’t go in the pool without being held swam by himself in his second lesson! Dean is a wonderful teacher. He is enthusiastic and encouraging. He provides the balance of learning whilst having fun which our boys respond really well to. We love the individual attention and tailored lessons and of course the flexibility and convenience of having Dean come to us. Thank you Dean!”

“I can’t speak highly enough of Dean, he is a fantastic swimming teacher and I would highly recommend him. If you are considering using his services – it is most likely for at least one of the two reasons we had. The first, it is definitely convenient having swimming lessons at home in your own pool. The second and most important reason we had for engaging Dean was due to issues with our six year old son learning to swim. Our son has never been a ‘water baby’ and was extremely worried about learning to swim. Even though he had attended years of swimming lessons from a very young age at a major swimming centre, it literally ended in tears. A lot of tears. In particular, going underwater was a major hurdle for our child. The day of the first swimming lesson with Dean, our son was extremely anxious. However, when Dean arrived, he immediately put our son at ease with his friendly, positive and reassuring manner. The first lesson went so well that by the end, our son was looking forward to the next lesson and was not worried at all. Dean gives excellent advice on aids that can help with any issues your child may have going underwater. Dean also has fabulous techniques he uses to get the swimming results you want for you child, without making them feel like they are being pushed to do something they are scared of doing. An example is when Dean asked our son on his first lesson if he wanted to go underwater. He said no. Dean immediately said “that’s ok.” But then Dean did his magic and a few minutes later our son happily put his face underwater. Amazing results! Dean is reliable, professional, kind and he has the patience of a saint. We are thrilled with the results Dean has achieved over the summer with both of our children. Our son now is confident in the water. He is happily going underwater, he is swimming and collecting toys from the pool floor. He’s had the best summer of his life in the pool – thanks to Dean!”

“There are some people that are just meant to be doing what they do, and Dean is definitely one of those people. He is absolutely amazing with children, and my daughter has gone from being afraid of the water without hanging on to someone, to jumping in off the edge by herself and swimming with no fear. Thank you so much Dean!”

“Cannot recommend Dean enough. Our boy has gone from clinging on for dear life to jumping in and trusting Dean in the water in 3 short weeks! Thankyou so much☺”

“I Cannot thank Dean enough for the work he has done to help our son feel safe and confident in the water. We are blown away in what he has achieved in only 2 terms.”

“My son has been having swimming lessons with Dean for almost two months now. He gets so excited about swimming class and has so much fun with Dean. I don’t think he even realises that it is a lesson and that he is learning! Dean is an awesome teacher and I am very happy that we were able to find him! My son started with pretty much no swimming skills other than playing a little in the water. I am amazed at how quickly his swimming skills have progressed and how quickly he has become confident in the water. Like many three year olds, my son gets distracted easily and he is sometimes shy or unsure of trying something new, however Dean seems to know just how to keep him on track in a kind way to keep his skills moving along. You can tell that Dean genuinely cares about the kids he teaches. On top of all this, classes are convenient for me. Dean comes to our house, so I don’t waste time driving to and from class and I also found Dean was very flexible with finding a time that suits us. I would definitely recommend Dean to anyone who is looking for a great teacher.”

“Deano teaches both my children and I cannot believe how far they have come in just a few lessons. Dean’s classes are fun, engaging and taught with patience and kindness. I can’t recommend Deano’s Nemos highly enough!”

“Amazing! My 6 year old went from not knowing how to doggy paddle to doing freestyle laps within 4 weeks of lessons with Dean. Couldn’t be happier!”

“Cannot recommend Dean enough. He was referred to me by a friend which he highly recommended. So I started my daughter 3 years of age in November 2018 where she had never taken a swim lesson prior. She took to Dean immediately, trusted and built confidence within the lessons. Within a couple of lessons she was floating on her back for 10 seconds. It has now been 3 months and her confidence and swimming is a lot better than kids her age that have been going since 6 months of age. She gets very excited to attend her lesson and her swimming improves every time. Worth every cent. Definitely money well spent. Guaranteed you will not be disappointed taking lessons from him.”

“Dean is the 6th instructor we have engaged to try to get our son (ASD L3/CP) swimming and by far the most successful. Dean employs a mix of teaching with rewards and fun. This is really working for our son and he has made amazing gains in a short time. The drive up to Maitland for the lessons is well worth it. Dean has great patience, skills and just the right personality for this gig. Dean constantly encourages and high fives our son throughout the lesson which spurs him to succeed.”