[LAP-news] Putting swimming in the schools -- 40% can't swim

[Mark Rauterkus]

https://www.scottishswimming.com/newsroom/news/2022/01/40-of-children-leave-primary-education-unable-to-swim.aspx

Thursday, January 27, 2022

40% of children leave primary education unable to swim



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MSP for Lothian region, Foysol Choudhury, returned to the Public Petitions
Committee today to continue his support for a local constituent, Lewis
Condy, who is highlighting the importance of children having access to
swimming lessons.

His petition was last discussed in November last year when the Committee
decided to write to key sector organisations to gather more information.

The Committee heard evidence that over 40% of children leave primary
education unable to swim and that there is a direct correlation between a
child’s social and economic background and their opportunity to learn to
swim.

Mr Choudhury said:

“We know that having access to swimming lessons gives people a benefit to
their safety in and around water, and to their health, fitness and
wellbeing.

“The Committee has heard that there are significant gaps in the provision
of swimming lessons with the availability of facilities and the cost of
lessons being significant factors driving unequal access.

“Resolving these inequalities is a matter of equality opportunity.

“Currently, there is no statutory curriculum for learning to swim in
Scotland.

“We have seen from the responses to my constituent’s petition, there is
widespread support within the sector and from the public for doing more on
this issue.

“I am delighted that the Committee has agreed to keep this petition open
and write to Scottish Government to find out how they intend to proceed.

Committee Member, Paul Sweeny MSP said: “

“Teaching kids to swim is a fundamental lifesaving exercise.  It is not a
recreational activity, necessarily.  I think it’s important to consider it
as a public safety matter rather than a sporting matter”.

Further information:

To access a video of the discussion please click
https://www.scottishparliament.tv/meeting/citizen-participation-and-public-petitions-committee-january-19-2022?clip_start=10:57:23&clip_end=11:12:14


To access the petition information,
https://www.parliament.scot/~/media/committ/2108

Citizen Participation and Public Petitions
Committee
1st Meeting, 2022 (Session 6), Wednesday 19
January 2022
PE1891: Make swimming lessons a statutory
requirement in the primary school curriculum
Note by the Clerk
Lodged: 16 September 2021
Petitioner Lewis Alexander Condy
Petition
summary
Calling on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to
ensure that all children will have had the opportunity to learn to swim
by making it a statutory requirement to provide lessons in the primary
school curriculum.
Webpage https://petitions.parliament.scot/petitions/PE1891
Introduction
1. The Committee last considered this petition at its meeting on 3 November
2021. At that meeting the Committee agreed to write to COSLA to seek data
on how many schools provide swimming lessons as part of the curriculum. The
Committee also agreed to write to the Royal Society for the Prevention of
Accidents and Scottish Swimming.
2. A summary of past consideration of the petition and responses to
information
requests are provided for the Committee’s consideration.
Background Information
During its consideration of this petition, the Committee has received 6
submissions.
CPPPC/S6/22/1/11
2
Submission from Foysol Choudhury MSP
3. Foysol Choudhury MSP provided a written submission to the Committee,
noting
that ‘my constituent makes the case well for a more consistent approach to
ensuring all children are able to swim by the time they leave primary
school.’
4. He goes on to state that he is ‘strongly supportive of an approach which
would
make swimming lessons available to every child, not only to those whose
parents could afford to pay.’
5. He also highlights a pre-Covid survey carried out by Sport England which
showed that a lower proportion of Black and minority ethnic children than
white
children swam regularly. He notes that ‘I am not aware of the figures for
Scotland, but this could usefully be followed up, as universal access to
swimming lessons across all primary schools could help to address any such
inequalities.’
6. Mr Choudhury states that he previously lodged a written question to the
Scottish Government in relation to which Local Authorities provide swimming
lessons in their primary schools but was informed that this information is
not
held centrally.
7. He also wondered whether ‘it is possible to contact each Local Authority
seeking more detailed information about current provision, to seek to
identify
trends, and any equality impact assessments of the current approach.’
Organisation Submissions
8. COSLA states in its submission that currently ‘there are no local or
national
mechanisms in place across Scotland to collect data regarding school
swimming lessons,’ noting that the delivery of swimming lessons in
individual
areas can depend on a range of factors, including access to facilities, the
cost
of facilities/lesson providers, the delivery model used (e.g. leisure
trusts, PE
specialists and class teachers) and the cost/access to transport.
9. COSLA also highlights sportscotland’s investment in the Active Schools
Network, which is designed to provide ‘more and higher quality
opportunities for
children and young people to take part in sport and physical activity before
school, during lunchtime and after school’.
10. COSLA confirms that ‘there are no curricular swimming lessons being
delivered
through the Active Schools programme, but that the latest figures they have
CPPPC/S6/22/1/11
3
pre-pandemic (for 2018-2019) suggest that 21 Local Authorities were offering
swimming activity through the Active Schools Network.
11. Scottish Swimming provided further information about The Learn to Swim
Framework which ‘aims to raise standards and achieve consistency in
swimming programmes across Scotland,’ noting that ‘there were over 106,000
children enrolled in learn to swim programmes across the country prior to
the
pandemic.’
12. Scottish Swimming reiterates the petitioner’s point that over 40% of
children
leave primary school unable to swim in Scotland, noting that a survey
carried
out in 2018 found that only 10.5% of children in community learn to swim
classes come from the 20% most deprived areas in Scotland, suggesting that
‘there is a direct correlation between a child’s socio-economic background
and
their opportunity to learn to swim.’
13. Scottish Swimming has submitted a proposal to the Scottish Government in
support of a programme of school swimming and are currently involved in
discussions with sportscotland over its potential development. Scottish
Swimming states that ‘we believe that any school swimming delivery should be
part of the curriculum or at least delivered as part of the school day,’
whilst
recognising that ‘in order to achieve this, it will need the support and be
the
responsibility of Scottish Government and Local Authorities.’
14. They go on to highlight broader work around water safety, including
work with
Education Scotland on an online school assembly initiative designed to
promote safely messaging and increase awareness of the risks of cold-water
shock and potential drowning.
15. Scottish Swimming also suggests that ‘gathering data to accurately
understand
school swimming provision across the country by each Local Authority would
be useful to inform any future approach, potential for support and design
of any
potential delivery model,’ noting that Scottish Swimming and sportscotland
are
‘working together to gather information to gain a better understanding of
current
provision using existing partnerships.’
16. RoSPA notes that, on average 96 people drown in Scotland every year,
highlighting that this is ‘disproportionate to the population rate in
comparison to
both our UK and European neighbours.’
17. RoSPA states that ‘swimming has been a statutory part of the national
curriculum for physical education in England since 1994’. However, it notes
that ‘almost one in four children was unable to swim 25m when leaving
primary
school,’ noting that this is due to ‘family affluence and location’.
CPPPC/S6/22/1/11
4
18. RoSPA echoes Scottish Swimming’s point that water safety goes beyond the
ability to swim and should include water safety lessons and rescue skills
needed to help reduce drowning, noting that learning to swim in a swimming
pool is ‘not the same as swimming outdoors with the added hazards such as
tides, currents and debris’.
19. RoSPA concludes by stating that it is ‘happy to support swimming
lessons in
the curriculum with additional education on essential topics such as cold
water
shock and water rescue skills.’
Petitioner Submission
20. The petitioner stresses in his response to the Scottish Government
submission
that his focus is on ensuring swimming lessons become mandatory in Scottish
schools, as the evidence he has discovered suggests that when children are
exposed to swimming lessons at an early age (i.e. through school) the chance
of drowning decreases significantly.
21. The petitioner suggests that the current policy of allowing councils to
choose
whether to provide swimming lessons is unfair, leading to many children
missing out or being forced to take private lessons, something which may be
inaccessible to lower income families or those living in rural areas.
22. The petitioner believes that making swimming lessons in school a
mandatory
requirement will redress this inequality.
23. The petitioner points out that learning to swim is likely to benefit
society, e.g. if
someone can assist others if they get into difficulty in the water, as well
as
providing wider health benefits to individuals.
Action
The Committee is invited to consider what action it wishes to take.
Clerk to the Committee
CPPPC/S6/22/1/11


Annexe
The following submissions are circulated in connection with consideration
of the
petition at this meeting –
• PE1891/C: Foysol Choudhury MSP submission of 4 November 2021
• PE1891/D: RoSPA submission of 7 December 2021
• PE1891/E: COSLA submission of 9 December 2021
• PE1891/F - Scottish Swimming submission of 9 December 2021
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