Insurance dispute threatens high school swimming

East Elgin Secondary School’s swim team is in imminent danger of collapse and, if it does, it will potentially take down competitive swimming for all schools in Thames Valley District School Board.
Parents and volunteers involved in running the swim team say the issue involves a dispute over insurance coverage between the Ontario Ministry of the Solicitor General and TVDSB over the use of the Ontario Police College pool.
They stressed that the issue didn’t involve anyone at the Ontario Police College, only the ministry that oversees it.
They asked local residents and those who support swim programs to contact their local MPP as well as school board trustees, because if no resolution to the conflict was found by Friday, Nov. 15, the EESS team as well as possibly all swim teams in the TVDSB regional would be cancelled.
Aylmer parents and volunteers provide most if not all the qualified officials for those meets.
(Heidi Weninger, a swim parent, updated the Express on Monday night, Nov. 4, saying that progress was seemingly being made in talks between TVDSB and the ministry, but a formal agreement was yet to be reached.) (AE/Rob Perry)