The impact of lockdowns on school swimming and the closure of swimming pools means that by 2025/26, an estimated 1.2 million children will have left primary school unable to swim the statutory 25m.
The projection has been made in a report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Swimming (APPG) and Swim England.
Even before the pandemic, a quarter of children could not swim the statutory 25m by the end of year 6. The report says this will rise to 57 per cent of year 7s by 2025/26 unless some form of catch-up provision is put in place.
Swimming and water safety have been a statutory element of the national curriculum for PE in England since 1994. All primary schools must provide swimming and water safety lessons in either key stage 1 or 2 and every pupil is required to be able to do the following:
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