City among worst for primary school leaver swimming

1 hour ago

Shariqua Ahmed,Peterborough and

Tom Jackson,Peterborough

News image — Billie's Fins swimming school opened in Bretton in June

Mousumi Bakshi/BBC A group of children kitted out in inflatable swimming training kit holding the bar at the edge of a pool with an instructor next to them — Billie's Fins swimming school opened in Bretton in June

Peterborough is ranked among the worst areas in the country for children able to swim proficiently by the time they leave primary school, research has found.

Data obtained by the BBC shows that only 48% of Year 6 pupils in the city can swim 25m - compared to the national average of 72%.

Billie Whyatt, who runs the Billie's Fins swim school, called for "more awareness and water safety talks in the school curriculum", adding: "People don't understand the importance of learning to swim; it's an extremely important life skill."

Peterborough City Council said it was the "responsibility of individual schools to make sure their pupils have access to swimming lessons".

Tom Jackson/BBC Billie, a woman in a purple T-shirt, smiling for the camera, while standing in front of a swimming pool. — Billie Whyatt said swimming was "an important like skill"

The national curriculum in England states that all pupils leaving primary school should be able to:

Swim competently, confidently and proficiently over a distance of at least 25m

Use a range of strokes effectively (for example, front crawl, backstroke and breaststroke)

Perform safe self-rescue in different water-based situation.

A BBC Freedom of Information request to the Department for Education (DfE) has revealed that while 70% of 2024-25 Year 6 leavers nationally could on average perform a safe self-rescue, only half of children from schools with the highest level of free meal eligibility could do so.

A Department for Education spokesperson said it was aware of the gap and it "needs to change".

Tom Jackson/BBC A swimming pool with two people swimming in it. — The national curriculum in England, states when they leave Year 6, all pupils should be able to swim competently over a distance of at least 25m

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In Peterborough, which is ranked among the five lowest in the country for the proportion of children being able to swim, residents are left with limited options for accessible, public facilities since the closure of the Regional Pool.

However, plans for a new £36m swimming pool near Bishop's Road have been submitted, which is expected to open in 2028.

In the meantime, some schools have been relying on temporary pop-up swimming pools to offer children lessons.

Whyatt added: "It's really important that children have a positive concept of learning to swim...they will naturally learn."

She said many children began lessons without the confidence or skills to move independently in the water, so instructors focussed first on basic movement and breath control - before introducing swimming strokes.

Zameer Ali, Labour's cabinet member for communities and public safety at Peterborough City Council, said: "It is the responsibility of individual schools to make sure their pupils have access to swimming lessons to meet the national curriculum requirement.

"We know we do not currently have all the swimming facilities available that we would like which is why we are investing so heavily in this area over the next few years."