Updates & Industry Views

Industry Insights

New Survey Results: How Are Kids Really Learning to Swim in the UK?

As part of the STA's Learn to Swim Week #ILSW2025, the STA surveyed UK parents of children under 12 to better understand how young swimmers are learning today - and the challenges they face.

The findings are striking:
Only 2.8% of parents said their children are learning to swim through school-based programmes, despite swimming being part of the national curriculum.

👀 Dive into the full insights and discover what’s holding kids back:
👉 Read the full report

STA, Swim England & Swim Wales Back Pop-Up Pools Initiative

In a major show of support for accessible swimming, STA, Swim England, and Swim Wales have officially announced their backing for the expansion of pop-up pools across the UK.

These temporary, mobile swimming pools aim to tackle the growing challenges around pool availability and provide more children and communities with the opportunity to learn to swim—regardless of location or facility access.

📝 Read the full briefing note here:
👉 https://lnkd.in/eA46Rist

Ensuring Every Child has Access to Swimming

Fantastic news from BBC News in Peterborough highlights the growing national on improving access to swimming, including the Chancellor’s announcement of £240m Growth Mission Fund. This serves as a vital that swimming is not just a sport—it's a life-saving skill that every child should have the chance to learn. As Peterborough explores funding opportunities with Sport England, Living, and local partners, we must ask ourselves: Are we doing everything possible in Shropshire & Staffordshire to ensure every primary-aged child has access to quality swimming provision?

If you're looking to enhance your swimming programs or collaborate with local providers to improve access and outcomes, now is the time to start the conversation.

We would love to connect with school leaders, PE coordinators, and MATs across Shropshire & Staffordshire who are eager to learn more or collaborate. Contact us today!

Read the full article here -

Peterborough primary installs 'pop-up pool' to encourage swimming - BBC News

Swim Direct News

Lovely to see our first school set up - all built and ready to go.

Think you will agree it looks amazing and that's just the outside