As a dad, I want nothing more than my children to be safe and happy. I was therefore somewhat shocked to recently read that there are over 400 deaths each year from drowning in the UK and that it’s the third highest cause of death in children in this country.
Bournemouth Collegiate School, where I have the great privilege of being the headmaster, is a small independent school split over two sites – the younger ones on a campus close to Sandbanks, with the older ones, including boarders, in a beautiful old building situated on the coast five miles to the east. Each school site has an indoor pool, which means that every week pupils from aged two to 18 have the opportunity to swim.
Having read that startling death toll from drowning, I began to reflect on the importance of our school swimming pools and looked up some facts. It seems that over 45% of school children in this country don’t get offered swimming at school, so it’s perhaps therefore not surprising that nearly 40% of children leaving primary school can’t swim.
Pools aren’t easy, or indeed cheap facilities to run for a school. Any school that has a pool will know the high cost of maintaining and running one – but when faced with statistics like this, it’s worth every penny, surely?
It’s long been proven that swimming is one of the best all-round sports – great for cardiovascular, balanced skeletal development, flexibility and developing a strong core. I also like the fact that it teaches discipline, control and focus, particularly among those pupils who swim competitively.
Competitive swimmers – of which we’re fortunate to have many – show a level of dedication and commitment that’s right up there for school sports.
In the last few years we’ve had a Paralympic Champion in Alice Tai, a British record breaker in Kayla van der Merve and most recently Leon, a young lad in Year 10 who was named Para Swim Talent Athlete of the Year. Their approach, and that of many other swimmers at school, rubs off on others; their focus and commitment sets a tone for pupils across the school.
Both of our pool facilities aren’t just used by pupils at BCS, but also many others in our community, including local scout groups and nearby primary schools for swimming lessons. I recently visited our senior pool on a Sunday afternoon and found it packed with members of the local lifesaving group, who use the pool in winter and the sea in summer.
Swimming isn’t just about keeping our children safe, helping them to grow up fit and healthy or teaching them the value of resilience and dedication – it’s also great fun. There’s much to be said for having at pool at school, and at BCS we’re very fortunate to have two.
Russell Slatford is the headmaster of Bournemouth Collegiate School.
