We are an island nation. We need to learn to swim. Safely.
As the temperature rose to record breaking levels, the people of the UK did what they always do when the sun comes out – strip off and jump into the nearest body of water. But to safely enjoy the benefits of our rivers, lakes, reservoirs and oceans, the water must be respected, and understood.
Conservative Friends of the Ocean is passionate about water safety, particularly ocean literacy and safe swimming. To us the ocean is not just a body of water but a source of joy, a salve for mental and physical health and the centre of livelihoods and communities. But above all the ocean is something to be respected. a
Although true Thalassophobia (fear of the ocean) is relatively rare, many people admit to being scared of the vastness of the ocean and concerned about what may be lurking beneath its surface.
We are an island nation, shaped profoundly by our geography and the water that surrounds us. Yet for a nation boxed in by the sea – outside of Adam Peaty and the GB Swim Team – we have a remarkably low swimming ability. In 2019, Swim England found that a staggering 14.2 million people could not swim. That is one in three of the adult population in England who would struggle to get themselves down one length of a 25-metre pool.
Even before the pandemic, a quarter of children could not swim 25 metres which is the Government target for all children at the end of Year 6. A joint report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Swimming and Swim England found this will rise to 57 percent by 2026 unless some form of catch-up provision is provided. Schools have many competing pressures but of all the skills you learn there, very few could directly save your life. Swimming could.
But water safety is so much more than front crawl. Even the best swimmer can be in danger very quickly if they don’t understand the unique nature of open water. Tides, rip currents, cold water shock, hyperthermia and reservoir drains can take even the strongest swimmer by surprise. That is why to fully appreciate the ocean, alongside swimming ability, we also need ocean literacy.
A curriculum drive to get the nation swimming must also be accompanied by water safety skills. I am grateful I was taught to swim from a very young age. To me the sea has always been a place of profound joy. My mother grew up on the shores of the English Channel and has instilled in all my siblings a love of the sea. If the sea is there, you get in it was the general rule of our family holidays.
I was lucky to have the water confidence to allow me to enjoy the ocean. I have fond, and also not so fond, memories of school swimming lessons, treading water, while fully clothed, holding a brick above my head. At the time it felt like a strange exercise, but my lifesaving lessons paid off when I had to pull out a friend who had developed hypothermia while swimming in the Lake District. What I learnt in a school swimming lesson was put to a very practical test and I – and my friend – are grateful.
This incident showed me the importance of understanding cold-water shock. Even as air temperatures soar, water temperatures can remain stubbornly cold, especially in deep water or where the water is fed by streams. Water literacy includes understanding the need for slow entry into cold water, acclimatisation for swimming in the winter months and applying the ‘float-to-survive’ technique if the swimmer gets into trouble.
I am privileged to have the swimming ability and water safety skills to enjoy the ocean. There are many mental, physical, social and communal benefits of the ocean and yet so many miss out due to lack of confidence. Swimming, lifesaving skills and water safety are key to helping people enjoy the ocean.
Local Councils should require each primary school to report on how many of their Year 6 school leavers can swim the length of 25-metre pool unaided. Central Government should recognise the importance of prioritising this skill, giving the budget and curriculum space to facilitate it, especially in the light of all the swimming lessons missed during the lockdowns. Swim England’s brilliant campaign to get adults confident in the water is also a huge step forward and should be supported.
The ocean should be a place of joy. Mysterious and yet magical, profound and yet powerful. We need to get as many people in it as possible.