High and Dry, 15,000 Primary Children Unable to Swim

That the Parliament considers that swimming ought to be one of the most accessible forms of lifelong health-enhancing physical activity as well as a vital life skill and welcomes all efforts to promote swimming as a regular part of a healthy lifestyle, including by the sport’s governing body, Scottish Swimming, local authorities, leisure providers, schools and community-based swimming clubs; considers that, in addition to health problems associated with physical inactivity, drowning and near-drowning incidents remain a significant public safety challenge, as outlined by the Scottish Government in answer to question S4W-26268, and regrets that up to 40% of school children are reported to be unable to swim by the time they reach secondary school; further considers that the Swimming Top Up programme, which funded swimming lessons for primary school pupils in Glasgow and across the country and aimed to increase the number of children able to swim, achieved significant success, particularly in funding lessons for children from the most deprived backgrounds, and notes the view that, in the spirit of a lasting legacy from the 2014 Commonwealth Games, the Scottish Government should closely examine with all appropriate partners a successor scheme or similar initiative that takes into account the evaluation of the Swimming Top Up programme and which has as its aim more children gaining the ability to swim and every child having the opportunity to access appropriate provision of swimming lessons.