A swimmer should aim to confidently swim lengths of the pool with ease and competency, have knowledge about water safety and be able to make a rescue.

Every autumn we have the same conversation with families. Their child can swim a length, the badge is on the bag, and the question comes up: is that the point where lessons stop?

Our answer has not changed since we first wrote about this in 2023. What has changed is everything that sits after it, because there are now three different ways for a swimmer to carry on once they reach our minimum standard. This post covers both, so you can see where your swimmer is and what their next step looks like.

Lifesaving Opportunities

Not only is swimming a vital life skill, as it can save your child’s life. There are also many additional physical and mental benefits from being a confident swimmer.

• Physically it will improve your child’s strength, cardiovascular endurance, and co-ordination
• Mentally they will develop their confidence and perseverance
• Socially they will meet and stick with individuals with similar interests

There are also plenty of other benefits to swimming, for example.

• Route to exercise
• Rehabilitation after a physical accident
• Family / Friend social time

What Does The National Curriculum Say?

During our School Swimming Sessions, we work towards the National Curriculum which recommends the following by the end of Key Stage 2.

• Swim competently, confidently, and proficiently over a distance of at least 25 metres
• Use a range of strokes effectively (for example, front crawl, backstroke, and breaststroke)
• Perform safe self-rescue in different water-based situations

However, this is just the start of their journey, and for the families we see on a regular basis outside of school hours, we expect a lot more. To help swimmers on their journey to competency, there are many different avenues to take with SafelySwim.

What Is Considered A Competent Swimmer?

Ultimately, completing Stage 5 is the standard we ask families to reach before discussing the option to stop learning to swim. To be clear, that is our own bar rather than a national one. The National Curriculum stops at 25 metres and safe self rescue, and we think that is too low a place to walk away from the water. An important part of Stage 5 focuses on being able to swim long distances, demonstrate the skills to make a rescue and attempting to swim whilst wearing clothes.

The good news is that reaching Stage 5 is rarely the end of the story. Most swimmers want to keep going, and there is now more than one way to do that with us.

Option One: Stages 6 and 7

Most swimmers move straight into Stage 6 and Stage 7 in the same weekly slot they already have. These stages build real distance and polish, taking swimmers up to 200 metres of each stroke, all four turns, individual medley and eggbeater treading water, and then on to 400 metre swims and 1500 metre distance work. Our post on Stages 6 and 7 explains what a typical session looks like.

Nothing needs to change for your family here. Same venue, same day, the same familiar faces on poolside, just a harder lesson.

Option Two: Rookies

We are adding RLSS Rookie Lifeguard sessions at Maritime Skills Academy from January 2027. Rookies is for swimmers in Stage 4 and above who have the strokes and now want to learn what to do when somebody else is in trouble, so think reach and throw rescues, casualty recovery, survival skills and water safety knowledge. It runs alongside their weekly Learn to Swim lesson, not instead of it, so they carry on through Stage 4 and Stage 5 at the same time.

Rookies runs as its own award ladder, Bronze then Silver then Gold, so swimmers keep earning something as their rescue skills build, in the same way the Stage awards work in Learn to Swim.

If your swimmer enjoys the rescue elements of their lessons more than the lengths, this is the route we will be pointing you towards. Keep an eye on your emails and our social media for the opening dates and how to book.

Option Three: Learn to Compete

Learn to Compete is for swimmers who want speed. Sessions cover tumble turns, dives, backstroke starts and how to race, and they are open from Stage 4. Like Rookies, this is an extra session on top of the weekly lesson, so the swimmer keeps working through Stage 4 and Stage 5 while the racing skills build.

Swimmers who get through the advanced end of Learn to Compete have outgrown what a swim school session can give them, and the right next step is a local community club where they can train and race properly. We will tell you when your swimmer is at that point rather than keeping them in a lesson that is no longer stretching them.

Important: Swimmers in Stages 4 and 5 must keep their regular Learn to Swim lesson running alongside Learn to Compete. Learn to Compete is an addition, not a replacement, so the lifesaving skills keep developing while the racing skills grow.

There is more detail in our Learn to Compete post, including what to expect from each session.

Awards Along The Way

To keep swimmers motivated, we have several award programmes running through the pathway:

• Stage Awards
• Distance Awards
• Learn to Dive Awards
• Water Safety Awards

Throughout the year we announce an Awards Week, which focuses on a particular award chosen by the class instructor. We love these weeks because they push swimmers a little further and give families something to celebrate. Awards Week is announced a few weeks ahead, so keep an eye on your emails and social media.

Why Stage 5?

During our Stage 5 and above classes, we teach important lifesaving skills such as:

• Performing a rescue
• Swimming with clothes on
• Treading water for 60 seconds

Learning these basic lifesaving skills gives your child the best possible chance of surviving if the worst happens.

We also take part in Drowning Prevention Week every year.

What If We Stop Too Soon?

If swimmers are taken out before they reach Stage 5, it is likely that their skills will deteriorate over time and will need further support later. As kids grow and develop, so does their balance, height and weight, which are all key parts of swimming. Sticking with weekly lessons throughout childhood increases the chance of their abilities remaining long term so that they can retain being a confident swimmer for life.

We see this most often as a return booking a year or two later, usually at a stage below where the swimmer finished. It is far cheaper, in time and in money, to keep going than to come back and rebuild.

If You Do Need A Break

Life happens. Costs, timetables, secondary school and other sports all get in the way, and we would much rather talk to you than lose you. Before you cancel, ask us about moving to a quieter slot, switching venue between DOYRMS, our Endless Pool at Whitfield and Maritime Skills Academy, or dropping to a shorter block of private lessons to get over a particular hurdle. There is usually an option that keeps your swimmer in the water.

Final Positives

We at SafelySwim want to ensure that those who come to us are happy, proud, and confident with their child’s progress. Swimming is a lifelong activity which helps develop healthy lifestyle choices, not forgetting a very rewarding career!

The longer your child participates in swimming lessons, the more competent and safer they will be in, on and around water.

Not sure where your swimmer sits on the pathway, or what comes next for them? Ask their teacher on poolside, or get in touch and we will talk it through with you.