Olympic gold medalist Becky Adlington is offering more than 5,000 free swimming lessons for children across the UK until September. The initiative, run through her Swim! swimming school, aims to address the number of children unable to swim 25 metres.
Adlington decided to offer the lessons after reading a BBC report highlighting the issue. She stated that pool closures have been a significant problem for a long time, contributing to the decline in swimming ability.
BBC research, using Department for Education data, indicated that 72% of Year 6 children could swim 25m in 2024-25. However, this figure fell to 55% for schools with a higher proportion of disadvantaged children. Adlington noted that nearly three in ten children are leaving primary school unable to swim 25 metres.
Adlington expressed a desire to collaborate with councils to tackle the complex problem, which she said involves issues beyond Covid-19, such as affordability, transport, and school funding. Swim England's 2021 report warned that almost 2,000 swimming pools could be lost by 2030.