Essex teacher tells us knowing how to swim can be 'lifesaving' as research shows many kids can't
She says learning the skill should be a priority
An Essex swimming teacher says every child should learn to swim as new research finds 1 in 3 children don't know how to, despite 96% of people in the UK thinking it's important for a child know how to swim.
That's according to the Swimming Teachers Association (STA), which says barriers including the pandemic and an increased cost of living have prevented parents taking their kids to lessons.
Vicky Malmsjö is a swimming teacher near Chelmsford. She tells us it's vital for everyone to learn how to swim: "Post-pandemic, swimming hasn't necessarily been a a priority, and with the cost of living crisis, swimming has fallen to even lower down the priority list.
"I believe as a swimming teacher that swimming isn't a luxury, it's a life-saving skill...
"If you walk along a river or go to a beach, and don't know how to swim, you aren't going to know how to float to live or how to tread water to save your life.
"It's such an important skill."
She says the pandemic, which led to pools being shut for long periods, meant children who may otherwise have learnt to swim were unable to: "We've got children coming who are 2 or 3 years old who've never been in a swimming pool before.
"There's potentially another crisis in two or three years time if parents affected by the cost of living can't afford to pay for swimming lessons from a young age because in a couple of years, we'll have another wave of toddlers who can't swim."
She also notes it's not just the public affected by the cost of living crisis: "There are increased running costs of running a swimming pool - it's much more expensive to heat pools now.
"Then swim schools have an issue: do they take the financial hit or do they make swimming lessons more expensive, thus alienating more of the public who then can't afford to pay for them?
"It's a lose lose situation."
It's not just students who have been affected by the pandemic. The STA reports it's also affecting swimming teachers, who couldn't work whilst pools were shut at the height of coronavirus restrictions.
The association says demand for swimming lessons is currently at a record high, but that availability is massively restricted due to a lack of teachers.
Vicky once again blames the pandemic: "The vast majority of swimming teachers are self-employed individuals, so, during the pandemic, when pools were closed, they had to go and seek other employment...
"My swim school has hundreds on the waitlist... we need more teachers."
To try and combat this shortage, the STA have launched the ‘Stand Up for Swimming’ campaign that will pledge to provide the funds to train thousands of swimming teachers for free around the UK in 2022.