What will my primary-age child (4 to 11) learn in Swim England swimming lessons, and how do they move up? The Learn to Swim stages and outcomes, awards, school swimming, and what comes after Stage 7.
The Learn to Swim Programme is Swim England's national teaching syllabus. It has three main frameworks, each ending in a medal:
Alongside the stages there are complementary awards such as Rainbow Distance, Water Safety and Water Skills awards. There is also an Adult Swimming Framework.
The early stages build water confidence and safety. Key outcomes include:
| Stage | Highlights |
|---|---|
| 1 | Enter and exit safely; move forwards, backwards and sideways 5m (feet can touch the floor); be comfortable with water poured overhead; float on front and back and return to standing; push and glide; give two pool rules |
| 2 | Jump in from the side; blow bubbles at least three times with nose and mouth under; float and stand up without support; travel 5m on front and back with feet off the floor and no floats; tuck and log-roll rotations; exit without support |
| 3 | Jump in and submerge; push and glide then travel 10m on front and on back; pick up an object from the bottom; hold a tuck float for 3 seconds; exit without using steps; know three of the four water safety messages |
The four key water safety messages taught in Stage 3 are:
Stages 4 to 7 turn confidence into the four competitive strokes. Key outcomes include:
| Stage | Highlights |
|---|---|
| 4 | Kick 10m each of backstroke, front crawl, butterfly and breaststroke (one piece of equipment allowed for three of them); head-first sculling 5m on the back; push, glide and swim 10m |
| 5 | Tread water for 30 seconds; three different shaped jumps into deep water; swim 10m of each stroke to expected standards; handstand held 3 seconds; forward somersault; show an action for getting help |
| 6 | Swim 10m wearing clothes; rhythmical breathing on all strokes (at least six breaths, three for butterfly); swim 25m to expected standards; a "shout and signal" rescue; a surface dive |
| 7 | Swim 25m of each stroke to expected standards; 50m continuously on one stroke; 100m using at least three strokes; a sitting dive or dive; tread water using eggbeater for 30 seconds; a one-minute group movement sequence; an obstacle course without touching the floor |
Stage 7 is the final core Learn to Swim award.
Each stage has a fixed list of outcomes, and your child must complete all of the outcomes to be awarded that stage.
From Stage 5 onwards, many swims must be "performed to Swim England expected standards", which means the stroke has to be technically correct, not just completed.
Swim England's guidance allows some flexibility:
Teachers check that a skill can be done consistently (more than once) before signing off an outcome.
Distance Awards (Rainbow Distance Awards) sit alongside the stages and can be gained at the same time as a stage or in between stages. They show that a child can swim from A to B without stopping and without stress.
No. A Distance Award is not an indication that a swimmer is safe in deep water.
Stage 7 is the last of the core Learn to Swim awards, and completing the Learn to Swim Framework earns the Learn to Swim Medal. Swim England recommends that children complete up to Stage 7 through lessons.
After that, children can move on to the Aquatic Skills Framework (Stages 8-10):
After Stage 10, options include joining a club in swimming, water polo, diving or artistic swimming, or a Rookie Lifesaving course. Club members then work towards Swim England Club Awards, which follow on from the Learn to Swim awards.
Swim England says Learn to Swim lessons should be led by a Level 2 qualified swimming teacher.
The teacher records each child's progress against the outcomes for their stage and decides when every outcome has been achieved consistently.
Under the national curriculum for physical education in England, all schools must provide swimming instruction in either key stage 1 or key stage 2.
Pupils should be taught to:
This is a separate requirement from the Swim England Learn to Swim stages, although the stages build the same skills (25 metre swims appear in Stages 6 and 7).
Yes, both are part of the Learn to Swim Programme.