VPaiva

Even that being the case, why throw away someone, and not the others? Why not give a chance to renegotiate and explain terms? Why not give the opportunity to have that discussion, which was never given in first place, and with the decision communicated via phone call and no openness for a face to face meeting, leaving people desperate and upset about how the situation was handled? It's also because even if you want to try and argue the opposite, the argument is frail in the sense that none of the treatment that is being delivered to the Tigersharks is also being delivered to the other teams/clubs using the facilities. And also, if you want to be seen as a trustworthy, reliable institution, you would have a dialogue and communication channel open, to discuss and find solutions for these issues way ahead of just handing them a notice saying that Tigersharks is no more with no possibility for recourse.

Think things through - it's less than 2 weeks as term is finishing, so it is accurate. And also, it's 2 weeks as he is no longer expected to be there ever according to what was told to him (so whether it's 2, 8 or 16, it is "all the same" as he would no longer be there). So, as there are no more classes taking place between now and the new term in September, it was 2 weeks notice... You talk about sympathy, but try and understand how much planning do you consider you can do when school breaks for term? How many meetings do you think can be arranged when everyone goes away for summer breaks? Do you understand the complication that the club is left in? This is just a community hub disassembled just like that, just because Alleyn's "feels like", and still very discriminatory, as they are not treating the other clubs the same way. Imagine you had a daughter or a son in a club, from which you expected them to learn from and continue their training in that sport/interest throughout the years. You wouldn't be too happy if just at the end of term their dance classes/football practice were announced to be discontinued, and come the new year, you would have to consider sending them to Lewisham or Blackheath instead of Alleyn's just because no more dance classes/football practice was available nearby as all other gyms and football grounds were taken by other clubs which taught at a level that you felt wasn't appropriate for your children (I know it is an extreme example, but it is given hoping you can understand the situation better) . It is an abuse of power from Alleyn's, and that's coming from an institution that wants to be seen has having a strong moral code guiding their actions, and to have roots in the community too, so this is a huge drawback in those aims... Alleyn's absolutely not deserving of any sympathy here...

Actually, it is not just being pedantic, it is also being a little disingenuous - people and companies make plans for their lives and their day to day operations way ahead of time. There are expectations and there is also the responsibility from when you are providing a service that you are reliable and dependable - people count on that. And a business that is not reliable will not survive long term. If you really believe that "8 weeks" is good enough to find a pool in the area (or expect all the swimmers to also be able to accommodate such), I really don't know what to say, but I am amazed as to what people with no knowledge and personal experience of going through the issue can say with "a straight face" and think they know what they are talking about... And again, this is *only* affecting one club/coach. Do you even ask yourself why that is? Do you support such a move? Or, asking from a different point of view, would you like to be in the receiving end of that situation, whilst seeing that other clubs using the facilities were not facing the same treatment??? Alleyn's is clearly on the wrong with this one...

Krys hasn't been given a reason when he received a phone call on the issue (yes, this was all handled initially over the phone). He was just informed that he wouldn't be allowed to use the space for next school term from September as per usual. This with 2 weeks to go for end of current term. When he pressed for reasons, none was given, and when he asked for a meeting, none was offered. The decision was presented as final, and without possibility for recourse or renegotiation of terms. This is all after 27y of using the place, and without any consideration as to what he might be able to do, or not, the day after, and of course, to all the swimmers of Tiger shark. It is also understood that Krys, and the Tiger sharks, are the only ones suffering this fate. From what is transpiring, none of the other clubs that have access to the facilities are suffering the same fate. They are still expected to operate come the beginning of the new school term. This is a highly discriminatory move towards Krys and the Tiger shark swimmers. From what is transpiring, Alleyn's may be intent on expanding their own swimming club offer, but give me a break, if they are not doing this to the other clubs who use the facilities, then this is also just an opportunistic and and greedy move on Alleyn's side. I bet they wouldn't be too happy if all the benefits they accrued over the years out of their "supposed" charitable action would also be rolled back as they also stopped being "charitable"....

It's all right, I think I was replying to cwjlawrence, so I quoted him

That train of thought does not stick - why the Tigersharks only? Why Krys? Why not any of the other clubs? They could also be making savings/profit from exploiting the slots for the other clubs... If we speculate that they did it for financial reasons, then they discriminated against the Tiger sharks, and not any other club - and we could even speculate that they did this because they thought Krys is off a certain age (ageism), and he would just take it and move on with his life and not make any noise about it. How do you think this comes out across? You let someone else dedicate their lives to build something from the ground up - create the routines, the club, the connection and familiarity to the neighboring families and the swimming pool at the school, and then when it suits Alleyn's or when they fancy, they just get rid of the club and take over their business model? This is unacceptable and appalling behavior for an institution that wants to be seen as having high moral standards. This is not how respectable people and trustworthy institutions deal with each other. This is just a greedy and inconsiderate behavior from Alleyn's school management - is this really what they want their pupils to learn??? Even speculating further, shouldn't this serve as a forewarning for any other clubs using their facilities? That their business model can be taken away at really short notice, and screw the users and all the swimmers? This really is a messed up situation from Alleyn's school... Sadly, that's not what you get from reading the original post. Alleyn's seems to have served a 2 weeks notice only for the club to terminate their business at the swimming pool at Alleyn's, and this seems to have been done as an accomplished fact, with no space for recourse or renegotiation. It was a blatant grab of Tigersharks business model / "intellectual property", as none of the other clubs using the same facilities seem to have suffered the same fate, allegedly. This is highly discriminatory towards Tiger sharks and their users, and by extension Krys too...

Again, I am not sure it is that simple, and I suspect there is bad faith in the mixture from the side of Alleyn's School. They have not cancelled the contracts for other clubs/teams using the facilities - they will continue using the facilities as they have been, and they haven't had the same treatment that they gave to Krys and the Tiger sharks swimming club (not renewing the contract, and informing him of the decision over the phone, with no opportunity for discussion or renegotiation of terms). This is no longer about VAT, this is just careless and inconsiderate behavior from an institution that is meant to known and behave better. This is discrimination, and even ageism comes to mind, as they probably expected Krys to just accept it.... This is disgraceful, and for all the talk about Alleyn's School playing ball because it suited them up until now, the community should roll back any benefit that Alleyn's School have received over the years... This is an unacceptable way to manage the situation, and for all those that are trying to rationalize the situation, could you just consider how would you feel if you had put in the effort over 27 years, giving away your weeks and weekends, come rain or sunshine, developing something from the ground up and creating a club not only cherished but of great benefit to the community, to have it taken away by an institution when it suited them and without the need to further clarify and explain their decision? This is opportunistic and greedy behavior from Alleyn's School, and it should be denounced and shamed.

I think there is more to it that just that - no amount of running the club themselves, which would also incur costs, would compensate for that change... The thing is, and for what seems to have taken place - this is only affecting Krys classes, and by extension, the Tiger shark swimming club. None of the other clubs who also use the same facilities have had their activity restricted and stopped. They all seem to continue to operate the same way as before, and are expected to continue to do so for next year. This is very discriminatory towards the users of the club, and to Krys himself. So, yeah, it is quite a rubbish and despicable attitude from Alleyn's School to behave like this. I mean, one is there for 27years, every single year, week and weekends, building the club and the community from the ground up. And what does one get for one's efforts? A simple call over the phone to announce that the school is not going to renew his contract and that he has to go? This 2 weeks before the term time finishes, and when everyone was already thinking about the beginning of the new term next year? And no justification over the phone or an invitation to a meeting to discuss the situation. Just a phone call and goodbye. It's rubbish behavior... This coming from a school that wants to be seen as setting a high standard of conduct for the community... Would you be happy if you had put in the effort over the years, creating the club and the community from the ground up, just for someone to then throw you out and steal your efforts and ideas, and profit from them instead? Because that's what Alleyn's School is seen to be doing in here... Don't they have enough already??

Wow, thanks for making this issue public. I thought I was the only one outraged at what took place. I am angered at this decision and the way that this was dealt with. I am one of many persons affected by this decision - the way that Alleyn's School dealt with the situation was very careless and inconsiderate to Kris, the coach of the team. He was given very short notice on this decision, and no clear reason as to why this happened. They also did not allow for him to renegotiate terms or suggested alternatives. Really unfair and inconsiderate from what is meant to be a role model institution and their role in the community. Personally, this is terrible news too - Tiger sharks swimming lessons were the place where I could just switch off from the pressure of the day to day, and with all the benefits it has in my well being and mental health. It helped me keep up with my swimming practice, and doing so without being under pressure from competitive swimmers or from the intense time commitment for lessons from other clubs. This also affects a very large community of users who have grown under Kris's guidance and feedback - this really is just an appalling situation and I would say this just tarnishes the Alleyn's School brand severely. Please, do add my name to any sort of letter to campaign on the issue. My name is Vitor Paiva, and I have been at Tiger sharks with Kris since 2016.