Meet our YDSC Coaching Team
Meet our fantastic Coaching Team who support our swimmers to achieve their full potential and help them have a little fun on the way.
All of our coaches are trained to the highest standards, are fully qualified, and all have up to date DBS (CRB) police checks. This page is here to give you and your children a better idea of their personalities as well as a little background information about each of them.
Head Coach – Ian Angell
Ian is the head coach of YDSC and became the club’s full-time coach in May 2018. He is a Level 3 SE Senior Swimming Coach and a Level 2 Open Water Coach.
Ian started his swimming career as an assistant teacher with Frome in 1995 before moving to Yorkshire and completing his swimming teacher qualification working in Harrogate. Whilst there he completed his Club coach qualification and became head coach of Thirsk Swimming Club in 2004. After some time overseas he worked as Head Coach at Street and Wellington clubs before coming to Yeovil. He also has a diploma in sports psychology and has recently completed his senior coach qualification and is a trainer assessor for the Royal Lifesaving Society.
Assistant Head Coach – Paul Perry
Paul is our lead coach for Development squads and in early 2022 was promoted to Assistant Head Coach. He is a Level 3 SE Senior Swimming Coach.
Paul is a former swimmer of YDSC. For 12 years as a swimmer, he reached County level consistently throughout his time with the Club. His biggest achievement was a Silver in the U/14 400m I.M. at the Somerset County Championships back in 1991.
Paul started his coaching journey in 2012 when his daughter Natasha joined YDSC at the tender age of 5. With a strong passion for swimming, he started helping the YDSC Learn to Swim program and went onto take a Level 1 Teaching Assistant course in 2013.
He found a strong passion for teaching, coaching, reviving praise & seeing improvements in the swimmers. This helped to give him the motivation to progress as a qualified Level 1 Swimming Assistant Coach and then within the same year qualify as a Level 2 Swimming Coach as well as both Level 1 & Level 2 Team Manager qualifications.
Paul helps to organise and assist in running the teams for the Cotswold League competition, as well as other swim meets and has been known to don the ‘Santa’ outfit at our YDSC Christmas Open Meet!
On top of the above, he has also been a Somerset County Pathway Coach and one of his most rewarding moments was coaching five swimmers to reach the Somerset County Pathway Camp in 2019 with all of those swimmers reaching the finals and placing with medals respectively.
Lead Coach – Ben Card
Ben is our lead coach for our Potential squad.
He joined YDSC when he was 9 years old. He swam for the club competitively for several years and was part of the Swim-Mark Network which gave him the opportunity to swim with Taunton Deane Swimming Club. This helped him go to British Nationals as part of a relay team. One of Ben’s biggest achievements as a swimmer was winning a Bronze at the ASA/Swim England South West Regionals for the 1500m.
He started volunteering on the poolside with younger squads when he was 13 achieving a Young Volunteer award and carried on helping younger swimmers achieve better skills and better results.
When he did his Level 1 Teaching award, he started volunteering for the YDSC Learn to Swim programme teaching children at the very start of their swimming careers to have the confidence in the water and the skills to later join the club’s competitive programme. He then started coaching at higher levels of ability and worked with children in every squad before being made the Lead Coach of Potential and then completing the Level 1 SE Assistant Swimming Coach Certificate. Ben is currently working towards the Level 2 SE Swimming Coach qualification.
Lead Coach – Emma Stacey
Emma is the lead coach for the Skills and Junior Skills squads.
She first joined YDSC in 2015. She then left for a few years but found her way back following Covid lockdowns where she has since happily settled into the Performance Squad. Emma is a Level 1 SE Assistant Swimming Coach and is currently working towards the Level 2 SE Swimming Coach qualification. Emma is a happy approachable team member who you can always go to for a chat. You can normally spot her with a big smile on her face at competitions or poolside at Oxley. Emma is also a qualified life guard and swim teacher.
Lead Coach – Michelle Harries
Michelle is our lead coach for the Mini Skills Squad. Michelle is a Level 2 Swimming Teacher and Level 2 SE Swimming Coach and has been volunteering with YDSC since her son and daughter started swimming with the club in 2012. Michelle loves teaching and coaching, especially the younger swimmers, she get’s so much enjoyment seeing the children progressing through the stages and is always very proud to see YDSC swimmers competing at Counties, Regionals, and Nationals.
Coach – Sharon Card
Sharon is a Level 1 SE Assistant Coach who coaches with the Skills squad. She is mum of two and both sons are part of the YDSC club. One of her sons, Ben, coaches the Potential squad and the other son swims with the club.
Sharon also has the honour of being the YDSC swimming club president and is our figurehead both within and outside the club.
Coach – Mark Ovens
Mark is a Level 2 SE Swimming Coach. He is also a Level 2 Team Manager. Alongside this, he is also a certified J1 official.
Mark was a swimmer for Taunton Dean Swimming Club, where he swam for 8 years competing up to county level. He joined YDSC in 2016 as a poolside helper once a week but has since increased his time poolside and moved throughout the squads.
He completed his Level 1 coaching qualification a few years later and has continued to complete qualifications and CPD courses since. This includes the ASA Young Volunteers Programme, for which he was selected as a finalist for the Young Volunteer of the Year Awards in 2019.
During the last few years with YDSC he has piloted a programme for Swim England Southwest between YDSC and Oxley Sports centre Learn to Swim programme as well as starting our own event called Dual in the Pool. Each year he helps organise and run the teams for the Cotswold League competitions, as well as other swim meets.
Coach – Anna Suosilta
Anne is a Level 1 SE Assistant Coach who coaches with the skills squad.
Assistant Swim Teacher – Sam Angell
Bio to follow soon
Land Training Coaches – Lee Paine and John Kinder
Bios to follow soon