Swim England Competitive Swimming Hub
Aquatic Diploma in Sporting Excellence (DiSE)
May 14, 2023
2026 applications now open! Please scroll down for more information. The application form can be found at the bottom of the page.
About the DiSE programme
The Diploma in Sporting Excellence (DiSE) is a specialised qualification designed for athletes/students who have the chance to demonstrate and develop their capacity to meet the demands of a high-performance sports performer. This qualification targets talented athletes identified by the National Governing Body (NGB), who are participating in a training and competition program within their sport to compete at the highest level.
The DiSE programme aims to provide a supplementary curriculum, enabling students to merge sports and academics, equipping them with the necessary skills, expertise, and certifications to pursue a dual career in high performance sports while also engaging in distinct paid work opportunities in the future. The qualification is awarded by Pearson and is worth 64 UCAS points upon completion.
DiSE is funded by Sport England and managed by SportsAid. Sport England receives the DiSE programme funding from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport which is then awarded to SportsAid; the charity then works with the relevant national governing bodies and learning providers to distribute and monitor the programme funding.
Who is the programme for?
This programme is specifically for talented athletes, who are actively involved in training and competition in their sport to achieve success at the highest level. Eligible participants are athletes between the ages of 16-18 or those aged 19-24 with an Education Health and Care (EHC) Plan. Please note athletes must be in full time further education for the duration of the programme, so this would usually mean athletes need to be 16 at the start of programme. (Born between 1 September 2009 and 31 August 2010).
Athletes must meet both the eligibility and discipline specific performance criteria, which can be found on the following pages, alongside a summary of past alumni and testimonial videos for each sport.
How does the programme work?
The Swim England DiSE programme is delivered nationally, in close partnership with our educational partner, Loughborough College.
Loughborough College have more than 10 years’ experience in delivering DiSE programmes across 18 NGBs and are graded good in apprenticeships by Ofsted (November 2023). Loughborough’s history of sporting excellence transcends the sports field and has created training programmes and pathways that have supported England captains, Olympic and Paralympic medalists and world champions. As one of the biggest and most successful sports colleges in the country, they aim to continue to develop future generations of talented athletes.
The DiSE programme is fully integrated into all talent pathways, and is specially designed to run alongside, and complement, athletes chosen Further Education (FE) programme (i.e. A Levels, BTEC or non-sports apprenticeship), as well as their club’s training programme.
The 2026 DiSE programme will run over two academic years (Yr 12-13) from September 2026 to July 2028.
Each athlete will be allocated an experienced Swim England DiSE Assessor, who will support the athlete through every step of their programme.
Delivery will take place through a blend of online and face to face workshops, camps and online 1-2-1 progress reviews, supported by skilled coaches, specialist practitioners, DiSE Assessors and the wider talent team.
The workshops are tailored around the qualification specification, and focus on the skills, knowledge and competence to achieve sporting excellence. Athletes will need to submit evidence as part of their portfolio; to demonstrate they meet the criteria set out by the qualification. This includes race plans, nutrition diaries and analysis, career plans, lifestyle plans, goal setting, reviews, professional discussion.
What topics are covered on DiSE?
DiSE Testimonials
The testimonial video playlist can also be found here on YouTube.
An extensive list of DiSE Diving alumni have gone on to enjoy continued international success on the world stage, you can see a small selection of names on the discipline specific pages.
SportsAid Mission
“To support young athletes in the talent system to combine sport and education so that they have the skills, knowledge and competence to pursue sporting excellence alongside developing the skills and qualifications for a post athletic career. DiSE provides a comprehensive syllabus to support young athletes to gain an additional qualification and achieve their full potential within the NGB talent pathway as well as their future career.”
Swim England Vision
The Swim England vision is Great experiences in water. For all. For life.
A foundation goal of the One Swim England strategy is success on the world stage. To deliver against this goal, the talent mission is to develop the strength and depth of the aquatic pathway through effective athlete development, to achieve high performance.
The performance pathway aims to deliver this through six objectives; people development, sporting culture and identity, effective athlete development, optimal planning, performance and performance development environments and effective partnerships.
Inclusion
| Your commitment to us | Our commitment to inclusion |
|---|---|
| Athletes are expected to make every effort to attend workshops and agreed learning opportunities with their allocated assessor. There is an understanding that from time to time this will not be possible; the programme is flexible to enable both training and competition to continue as an athlete’s main priority. Communication is at the heart of everything we do, athletes must remain keen to learn, develop and share experiences. Swim England’s dedicated team of staff are there to support you through your programme and expect good communication. | Swim England has published a new action plan to highlight the long-term commitment it is taking to make its sports and activities more accessible, diverse and inclusive. The Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan (DIAP) aligns with its recently launched new strategy, One Swim England, to tackle inequalities and remove barriers which currently prevent participation in swimming, diving, water polo and artistic swimming. The plan includes objectives and actions which will be completed in the short, medium and long-term.The full plan can be found on the Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan page within the Swim England Inclusion Hub. Hardship policy We fully understand the commitment and travel costs involved in being part of a national Talent programme. Therefore, Swim England have recently launched a Hardship Policy across all the talent programmes of which more details can be found here: Financial Hardship Support. |
FAQs
We have designed a bespoke model of delivery to work alongside the athlete’s further education programme. Whilst we offer a flexible approach, athletes will need to allocate time to complete tasks assigned by their assessor. To build a successful rapport with their assessor, effective communication is paramount for assessors to be able to provide the necessary support mechanisms.
The DiSE programme is designed to complement athletes academic studies and will not involve any exams. Athletes will need to submit evidence as part of their portfolio; to demonstrate they meet the criteria set out by the qualification. This includes race plans, nutrition diaries and analysis, career plans, lifestyle plans, goal setting, reviews, professional discussion. Part of the programme covers lifestyle management, aiming to support athletes with their commitments and teach them effective time management.
Yes. Swim England and Loughborough College will work on an individual basis to provide athletes with any support they may need.
For any queries regarding DiSE programme, please contact the relevant mailbox below for your discipline:
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
Apply Here
Important note: Please make sure you have read the eligibility and performance criteria for your discipline before applying Artistic Swimming, Diving, Swimming, Water Polo.
Applications close on the following dates:
| Discipline | Closing Date |
|---|---|
| Diving | Monday 20th July 2026 at 5pm |
| Swimming | Monday 25 August 2026 at 5pm |
| Water Polo | Thursday 9th July 2026 at 5pm |
| Artistic Swimming | Monday 14 September 2026 at 5pm |