In NSW, swimming lessons started in 1880. Now some schools struggle to put a relay team together

Compulsory swimming lessons were introduced to NSW schools in the 1880s as part of a nation-building program that came to define what it was to be Australian.

The state soon boasted it had taught 10,000 school-age children to swim, University of Sydney sports historian Dr Steve Georgakis said.

By the end of 2024, 106,500 public primary school students (or 84 per cent) in NSW were enrolled in the Department of Education’s swimming programs.

Dr Steve Georgakis, a sports historian and a senior lecturer in sports studies at the University of Sydney. He has published on swim education in Australia and swimming carnivals.

However, some parents say schools struggle to pull a relay team together, many children can only swim 50 metres if a lifeguard is nearby with a floatie, and they have noticed a decline in swimming ability since COVID forced pools to close and put lessons on hold.

Nationwide research released this week by Royal Life Saving Australia showed participation in school swimming carnivals has plunged and many schools were not offering swimming lessons.

“It’s not just a few students slipping through,” Georgakis said. “Because of various reasons, including funding costs of pools, a lot of students are now missing out.”

Herald readers wrote saying childhood swimming lessons had improved their health, given them a love of the water and changed their lives. Jennifer Hole said it led to her swimming across the world, including relay swims of the English Channel in 2012, Catalina Channel in 2015 and Manhattan Island in 2014.

Georgakis said the early investment in swimming lessons contributed to the success of swimmers such as world champion Fanny Durack.

“If you want every citizen to have a fulfilled life, they’ve got to be able to swim because swimming and an outdoor lifestyle, like going to the beach, is central to who we are. If citizens can’t swim, not only are they in danger of drowning, but more importantly, they won’t be able to be a part of the Australian outdoor way of life.”

The NSW Department of Education’s swimming program targets basic water skills and the ability to swim 25 metres confidently unaided in deep water. Last year, 143,000 students from 1550 public schools were enrolled.

Sebastian Rigley, 12, says Turramurra Public has a school swimming carnival but his family has noticed a difference in attitudes to swimming.Credit: James Brickwood

Susan Redden Makatoa of the Canterbury-Bankstown area has five children, all keen swimmers ranging in age from nine to 21 years, and had noticed a decline in participation at school carnivals and the strength of competition since the pandemic.

“You would be lucky to get eight kids per age group swimming 50-metre races and even then some struggle to finish,” she said. “Seeing the lifesaver walk the 50 metres with the kids and then help some out is sobering.”

A spokesperson for NSW Sport Minister Steve Kamper said the government took learning to swim seriously and that the former government’s approach had not worked. It had not reached those at greatest risk of drowning, including children from lower socioeconomic families, or culturally and linguistically diverse communities, and it ignored adults.

The NSW government last month announced a new learn-to-swim program – operating outside schools – to provide free learn-to-swim and water safety lessons to all major at-risk demographics.

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