Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recent Amateur Swimming Association study on the ability of primary school pupils to swim.

The Government welcomes the work that the Amateur Swimming Association has carried out over the last three years to produce research on school swimming. Their 2014 research indicates that 45% of 7-11-year olds are still unable to swim 25 metres unaided. Whilst this represents an increase of 6% since 2013, we want to see acceleration in this improvement.

Swimming remains compulsory in the national curriculum for physical education (PE) as one of only two activities specifically referenced in the programmes of study. The curriculum sets out that schools should teach pupils to swim 25 metres confidently, and use a range of strokes. In addition to the core funding schools receive to deliver the national curriculum, we are providing over £450 million of ring-fenced funding through the primary PE and sport premium to improve the teaching of sport in primary schools. Schools have the freedom to use this funding for additional swimming provision, and many schools have already chosen to do so.