Swim England

A nation swimming

Free digital resources to help schools offer ‘life-changing swimming lessons’

A range of digital resources to help schools offer ‘life-changing swimming lessons’ are now available free of charge.

Swim England has scrapped the £36 fee to join its School Swimming and Water Safety Charter.

It means schools and swimming lesson providers can now access plans, guidance documents, videos, water safety presentations for use in classrooms and downloadable awards – plus much more.

Charter members will also receive regular updates, tips and news to keep lessons fun and exciting.

Lorna Goldie, Swim England’s school swimming and water safety development officer, said: “We firmly believe that high-quality school swimming and water safety lessons can be life-changing.

“Repeated tragedies during summer heatwaves have highlighted the need for children and young people to be able to make good decisions about where and when it is safe to swim and what to do in an emergency.

“So, with this in mind, we have taken the decision to make the Swim England School Swimming and Water Safety Charter free to sign up to for all schools and lesson providers.

More important than ever

“For many young people, school swimming will be their only opportunity to learn to swim. The Swim England School Swimming and Water Safety Charter provides schools and swimming lesson providers with resources which will support with the delivery of an effective, engaging, progressive and fun school swimming lesson programme.

“Resources are updated regularly, giving schools the opportunity to ensure pupils receive the best possible school swimming delivery.”

Ashley Jones, Swim England’s Water Safety and Drowning Manager added that the School Swimming and Water Safety Charter content was a key tool in ensuring children left primary school able to swim competently, confidently and proficiently for at least 25 metres using a range of strokes effectively – as well as performing safe, self-rescue in different water-based situations.

He said: “School swimming and water safety is more important than ever.

“With pools shut during the coronavirus lockdowns and some facilities at risk of closure due to increasing energy costs, a generation of children face missing out on the skills and knowledge of how to stay safe in an emergency.

“The School Swimming and Water Safety Charter resources will enable schools to meet the required outcomes of the national curriculum programme of study for physical education – not just in the pool but the classroom as well.”

To find out more and sign up for the School Swimming and Water Safety Charter, please click here.

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