They know by now how important personnel is in Havelte. Gert Jan Cuperus is a board member of swimming pool De Kerkplek in the village. Things almost went wrong in his bath last summer when a 14-year-old swimmer had to be resuscitated. Fortunately, the pool staff was able to intervene quickly, partly because they had the correct certificates to stand next to the pool. And that is both a curse and a blessing for Cuperus.
“What happened last year was not nothing,” says Cuperus. The people standing by his swimming pool all have the right diplomas, such as BHV, First Aid and Lifeguard certificates. “As a board, we are convinced that we are doing well in this way, with only skilled people along the pool”, says Cuperus.
As a result of the incident, he also received many questions from other swimming pools. Because qualified pool personnel are not readily available. “The flush is just thin and recruiting people is hard.”
Posting vacancies often does not yield any results, so employees of the Church stains try to enthuse people in their own network to obtain the right diplomas.
Next week, on April 29, the swimming pool will officially open, but not everything is closed yet. For example, it is not yet clear what opening hours the swimming pool will use, partly due to the lack of staff on the side. “We hope to close it this weekend, but we cannot guarantee that we will use the same times as last year,” said Cuperus.
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