FAQs | Cardiff, Lakeside and Rutland

Is the water safe for swimming in?

Can I view my bookings and tickets online?

What are your prices?

Are refreshments available at Lakeside?

When is Aqua Park Cardiff open?

When is Aqua Park Lakeside open?

When is Aqua Park Rutland open?

Carer tickets for season pass holders?

Seasonaires/Season Pass holders with a disability can make an applicaton of a free Carer Pass that goes alongside the current Pass held.

We are committed to providing an enjoyable and safe visit for all our guests.

You can email us with proof of disability to make a Free Acompanying Carer Season Pass application. Once your application has been approved, you can make the booking online for the disabled guest, and email us to add the carer pass to the booking, you can not book a carer season pass online.

The Carer Pass is issued to the disabled guest and will have the name, date of birth and a photo of the disabled guest. It is therefore transferrable between carers and will not be bound to any specific carer. Please buy a Season Pass for the disabled guest and send proof of entitlement to us via email. The proof of entitlement accepted is the same as for a carer’s ticket (see previous section). Please note that a Carer Pass cannot be used without the presence of the disabled Passholder that it goes alongside. This is because the Pass is designed to offer assistance to the disabled guest only.

A carer must be over 14 years of age and capable of assisting the guest who has the disability. The carer would be expected to understand the disabled person’s condition and assist them in managing it for the duration of their visit. If more than one carer’s ticket is required, a letter from a GP or consultant is needed stating the number of carers required. Please note, parents and guardians do not qualify as carers. A carer ticket is available for people where support is needed that is significant and substantial and in excess of what could be reasonably expected of family/friends already accompanying the guest. The support must be due to disability-related needs.

Participating in water sports activities at the Aqua Park is vigorous and physically demanding. Please check the entry requirements to ensure that the activity is suitable on an individual basis and seek professional medical advice before booking.

For proof of disability, please provide any ONE of the following forms of documentation:

Entitlement to Disability Living Allowance for children under 16 or DLA/Personal Independent
Payments (PIP) for those aged 16-64, either in the form of a letter stating that the benefit has been
awarded, or the actual Allowance book
Attendance Allowance or Carer’s Allowance letter of award
Incapacity Benefit books, or a letter notifying the recipient that the benefit has been awarded
Incapacity Benefit or Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
A valid Blue Badge
In the case of visual impairment, a registration card known as the BD8 or a Certificate of Visual
Impairment (CVI)
A local authority registration document which is local to the attraction where it is being submitted
Credibility’s Access Card

Do I need a Lifeguard qualification to apply as a Trainee Lifeguard?

What can I expect at a Duty Manager, or Manager interview?

Does my Lifeguard qualification need to be valid for the whole summer season?

What Lifeguarding qualifications do you recognise?

Is there a minimum age in order to apply?

What experience do I need to apply?

Can I apply if I don’t have a British National Insurance Number/British residence?

When do I need to be available from and to?

How do I make a good application?

What can I expect at my interview?

Where can I stay in Rutland?

Where can I park at Lakeside?

Are there changing facilities at Lakeside?

Where is Aqua Park Lakeside?

Spectating and dogs?

Picnics at Lakeside?

Is there anything else to do at Lakeside?

Where do I park?

How to find Aqua Park Cardiff?

Are there changing facilities?

Are there any refreshments available?

What if I am spectating?

I’m coming in a Bus/Coach with my group, where to they park?

I’m bringing a big group, is there anything I need to do?

When can I bring my students to the Aqua Park?

Where can I park at a Rutland Water?

What happens if I am late or stuck in traffic?

Are there any showers or changing facilities at Rutland?

What else can I can do, where can I stay?

Must I remove all jewellery?

Are there fish in the water?

Can I BBQ or picnic at Rutland Water?

What else is there to do at Rutland Water?

Can I add wetsuit hire to a booking retrospectively?

Can I buy a season pass for my child?

Do you have Lifeguards?

Can I wear shoes on the park?

Can I wear spectacles on the Aqua Park?

Can I wear Fancy Dress?

Can I participate if I am pregnant?

What if it’s raining, windy or thunder storms forecast?

Rain: You can still take part in the rain- you are going to get wet anyway! The Aqua Park is great fun in the rain!

Wind: Wind speed and direction at our venues is continuously monitored through a dedicated weather station installed on-site. Real-time data will be accessible to staff responsible for enforcing this policy. When the weather station records wind speeds consistent with or exceeding Beaufort Force 6 for a sustained period, the park will be closed.

Thunder and Lightening:

Safety First: The safety of all visitors is of utmost importance. When thunder and lightning are observed over the water, all activities will be temporarily stopped to ensure the safety of participants and staff.
20-Minute Wait: Activities will only resume after a visual confirmation that the storm has passed. Once the last lightning strike over the water has occurred, a mandatory waiting period of 20 minutes will be enforced before activities can resume. This waiting period is essential to ensure the safety of all involved.
Constant Monitoring: Throughout the waiting period and the resumption of activities, weather conditions will be continuously monitored. If thunder and lightning resume during this period, the 20-minute wait period will reset, and activities will remain on hold until another 20 minutes have passed without any lightning strikes.
Individual Consideration: The impact on ticket holders will be assessed on an individual basis in respect of refund and credits.

Notification: Aqua Park Group reserve the right to cancel or reschedule Your Session at any time when reasonably required with no prior notice due to severe weather. We will inform You as soon as reasonably possible if We need to cancel or reschedule Your Session. However, we cannot guarantee that you will be informed of such cancellation if you have not provided the correct contact details for your booking. In the first instances this will be via text and or email. You will receive a gift certificate for the value of Your Order which You can use to re-book for an available Session. The cancellation or rescheduling of Your Session does not automatically entitle You to a refund.

What Happens if my session is cancelled?

How do I redeem a gift card?

Can I phone you?

Can I get a refund?

Carer tickets?

We are committed to providing an enjoyable and safe visit for all our guests. It is important to be aware that our decision-making is based on The Equality Act, and we help you communicate the types of reasonable adjustments you should be legally entitled to.

You can email us with proof of disability to make a Free Carer Ticket application. Once your application has been approved, you can make a booking online for the disabled guest, and email us to add the carer ticket to the booking, you can not book a carer ticket online.

A carer must be over 14 years of age and capable of assisting the guest who has the disability. The carer would be expected to understand the disabled person’s condition and assist them in managing it for the duration of their visit. If more than one carer’s ticket is required, a letter from a GP or consultant is needed stating the number of carers required. Please note, parents and guardians do not qualify as carers. A carer ticket is available for people where support is needed that is significant and substantial and in excess of what could be reasonably expected of family/friends already accompanying the guest. The support must be due to disability-related needs.

Participating in water sports activities at the Aqua Park is vigorous and physically demanding. Please check the entry requirements to ensure that the activity is suitable on an individual basis and seek professional medical advice before booking.

For proof of disability, please provide any ONE of the following forms of documentation:

Entitlement to Disability Living Allowance for children under 16 or DLA/Personal Independent
Payments (PIP) for those aged 16-64, either in the form of a letter stating that the benefit has been
awarded, or the actual Allowance book
Attendance Allowance or Carer’s Allowance letter of award
Incapacity Benefit books, or a letter notifying the recipient that the benefit has been awarded
Incapacity Benefit or Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
A valid Blue Badge
In the case of visual impairment, a registration card known as the BD8 or a Certificate of Visual
Impairment (CVI)
A local authority registration document which is local to the attraction where it is being submitted
Credibility’s Access Card

Once we receive your application our team will review your supporting documents. This is not the same as other decision-making systems you may be used to such as claiming disability benefits.

For this reason, the threshold for making decisions is high and each adjustment we consider must have an appropriate description of need and supporting evidence.

I’m differently-abled, can I take part?

Are there any concessions for NHS, Military, blue light?

Raffle prizes and donations?

Each month our organisation receives dozens of approaches and donation applications. In view of the growing number of requests we receive, we have now created a short guide to our donations policy – the scope of which is to provide background on the cause(s) we support and how we will consider all future requests.

Overall Policy Aqua Parks Group seeks to contribute to the communities in which we live and work in a number of ways. In addition to providing employment opportunities and minimising our environmental impact, we aim to provide individuals and families with the opportunity to get fit and enjoy outdoors Watersports activities. We would like to be able to donate to all of the worthy registered charities that contact us, but the high demand inevitably means we have to limit our donations. We have decided that In order to achieve the best effect we will focus on a single charity of choice over a two-year cycle and we will review our policy each year to monitor impact and effect. 2023-2025 period – please note that we have selected a charity as a focus of all of our donations and this charity is Above Water, as a result, no further donations of any kind will be considered. For more information on what Above Water Responsibility for the coordination of sponsorship lies with the Directors of The Aqua Parks Group. The donations fund is therefore focussed on registered charitable organisations that: Work across the community close to operational sites and/or have connections to the industry in which we operate.

What we fund We will only consider applications from charities and non-profit organisations that demonstrate how a donation will enhance the well-being or safety of people through improved /health/welfare or environment. Your organisation must be a registered charity and working in: Health Education and wellbeing Environment-based or working in or around our area of operation.

What we will not fund Individuals who are looking for sponsorship for fundraising activities of any type of political organisation and campaigns or any initiative that is outside of the criteria outlined above.

How to apply If your organisation and proposed funding initiative fit our criteria please submit your donation request by email to cs@aquaparkgroup.co.uk We are unable to respond to applications sent via post.

Timescales We review applications once every two years. The next meeting will be in December 2023. To submit a donation request on behalf of your chosen event or cause, please tell us a little about your cause and your intended use of any donation we make. If you have a letter confirming your status from the Charity Commission, stating that it is a registered charity, this should also be submitted to us.