For clients booking self-led sessions with Freediving London Ltd 
Safety-first principle: every session is built around constant buddy supervision, honest self-assessment, 
respect for personal limits, and a calm, responsible freediving culture. 

1. Purpose 
These guidelines set the minimum safety expectations for all self-led freediving training sessions. They are intended to 
support a safety-driven ethos, responsible freediving culture, and respectful pool etiquette. 
 
2. Before You Book or Enter the Water 
• You must be medically fit to freedive and disclose any relevant condition, injury, or medication that could affect breath- 
hold training. You must also complete the AIDA medical statement and return this to Freediving London. 
• All participants must hold their own freediving insurance covering personal injury and third-party liability. 
• No one may participate under the influence of alcohol, recreational drugs, or anything that impairs judgement or recovery. 
 
3. Train Within Your Certification Level 
Each freediver must train only within the limits of their current certification, experience, and comfort level. Do not use a 
self-led session to test personal bests, push beyond known limits, or copy drills that sit outside your qualification. 
• If you begin consistently reaching the upper end of your current certification level, stop increasing the load and enrol on 
the next AIDA Pool training level before progressing further. 
• AIDA course guidance makes clear that pool training is structured, supervised, and level-based, with the pool 
curriculum building from introductory skills into more advanced freediving practice. 
 
4. Buddy System and Session Conduct 
• No breath-hold attempt is ever conducted alone. Every active diver must have a dedicated, alert safety buddy or 
designated safety freediver. 
• The safety buddy must remain on the surface, breathing, focused, and ready to assist immediately. 
• A freediver is monitored from submergence until at least one minute after surfacing and breathing normally. 
• If an odd number of participants are present, one group of three should work together. 
• One diver actively training 
• One dedicated safety buddy fully focused on the diver 
• One resting diver preparing for the next attempt 
• Roles rotate clearly 
• Only one person should be actively training in a lane or marked space at a time unless the session plan specifically 
allows otherwise. 
• The safety buddy must not engage in conversation, breath-hold, or any other activity that reduces attention while supervising a diver. 
• Statics in groups: multiple divers should not perform static apnea simultaneously unless each diver has a dedicated safety buddy. 
 
5. Pool Etiquette and Responsible Culture 
• Be quiet, punctual, and aware of others in the pool area. 
• Keep kit tidy, fins controlled, and movement deliberate to avoid collisions and unnecessary distraction. 
• Respect lane direction, pool markings, and any separate training zone set by the session leader or venue. 
• Do not imitate, mock, or encourage unsafe behaviour. Freediving culture should reward calm decision-making, self- 
control, and honesty about limits. 
• Any sign of hypoxic stress, distress, poor concentration, or unusual behaviour should be treated seriously and the diver 
should stop for the day. 
• Anyone seen to be pushing past their certification level in the self-led sessions may be asked to leave the session and 
could be prevented from training with Freediving London if they continue to ignore guidelines. 
 
6. In-Water Safety Rules 
• Static apnea and dynamic apnea must be supervised using agreed signals and rescue procedures. 
• For dynamic work, the safety buddy must keep close surface position, use a mask and snorkel and remain able to 
intervene immediately. 
• In the event of a blackout or loss of motor control, all breath-hold activity in the pool must stop immediately until the situation is fully resolved. 
• Anyone who has a blackout or LMC must not continue breath-hold work that day. 
 
7. Incident Response and Escalation 
• If a blackout or loss of motor control occurs, the safety buddy must support the head, keep the airway clear of the water, 
and escort the diver to the poolside. 
• Any incident should also be reported to the Freediving London instructor on poolside immediately. 
• The diver should be encouraged to breathe calmly and be observed until fully recovered. 
• If recovery is delayed or anything seems abnormal, follow venue emergency procedures immediately and seek medical 
attention. 
• Any incident, near miss, or concerning symptom must be recorded and reported to Freediving London management. 
 
8. Aligned With AIDA Safety Guidance 
These standards are written to reflect the attached pool safety advice and current AIDA course guidance. AIDA materials 
describe structured pool learning, instructor supervision for course training, and clear progression through level- 
based freediving education. 
• AIDA’s published course guidance shows that introductory pool training is supervised and that student-to-instructor 
ratios are controlled in pool or confined-water settings. 
• Freediving London therefore expects self-led participants to apply the same seriousness to safety, supervision, and 
honest progression that AIDA promotes in formal training. 
Freediving London will ensure that a fully qualified freediving instructor with in-date EFR/NPLQ/Water safety & rescue qualification is present for each session. This person will be the designated first aider, responsible for any incidents that may occur. They will act as the session leader for both normal operations and emergency situations. Everyone will be made aware of who this person is, and should there be an incident, their instructions should be followed immediately. 
 
 
9. Participant Acknowledgement 
By joining a self-led session, I confirm that I have read and understood these guidelines, will train within 
my certification level, will maintain my own insurance, and will stop immediately if safety is uncertain. 
 f our clients.