Speedo’s Swim United with Active Black Country and swim stars Adam Peaty, Ellie Simmonds and Michael Gunning have started a new program in the U.K. to tackle the decline in children learning to swim. The program, launched on April 26, follows news that an estimated 2 million children in the United Kingdom left elementary school last year without knowing how to swim. The initiative runs over four months in conjunction with Speedo Swim United’s change.org petition and will see pop-up pools located at schools in regions of the country most affected by low swimming attainment. In addition to the pools, the program partners will work with local communities to better understand the barriers to swimming that local families face. Recent statistics from Sport England have revealed that almost 1 in 3 (28 percent) children are now leaving school unable to swim, up from 1 in 4 (25 percent) in 2022.
Image: Malik Skydsgaard on Unsplash
