Government not doing enough for Queensland kids: Former Olympian Sam Riley weighs in on swimming debate

A former Olympian has weighed in on Queensland’s lack of school swimming programs, saying the initiative does not go far enough and recommends double the amount of compulsory lessons.

Swim school owner and former Olympian Samantha Riley has weighed in on Queensland’s lack of school swimming programs saying the initiative does not go far enough and recommends double the amount of compulsory lessons than are currently prescribed.

Ms Riley, who runs Sam Riley Swim Schools in Mount Gravatt and North Lakes, said, “while there will always be exceptions, especially in isolated regional areas, a minimum of 10 swimming lessons per year must be compulsory in all Queensland schools from prep to grade 3”.

The Queensland government maintains swimming lessons are already compulsory in all Queensland state primary schools and recommends a minimum of five lessons per child; however school parents have claimed the rollout of the program is confusing and inconsistent.

Some students reportedly are only getting lessons in certain year levels, while other parents are being asked to fork out extra cash for lessons and rural towns have increasingly found it harder to travel to local pools to teach water safety.

Sam Riley Swim School at North Lakes is having an open day at its new pool. Samantha Riley. Picture: Bradley Cooper

In conjunction with the lack of compulsory swimming lessons offered by the state, Ms Riley also blames COVID for the declining number of children being able to swim confidently.

“There was a statistic recently that estimates over a million swimming lessons were missed throughout COVID with some states impacted more than others. So many children have missed lessons in the last three years and that will impact those at the crucial stage of developing their confidence,” she said.

Ms Riley has urged parents to consider swimming lessons outside of school as well as school based programs to ensure the safety of their child around water.

“I believe it must be a collaborative approach, relying only on schools to teach children just isn’t enough, they must do both. Swimming lessons are a long-term investment in your child’s aquatic safety and is something that should be considered all year round,” she said.

Originally published as Government not doing enough for Queensland kids: Former Olympian Sam Riley weighs in on swimming debate