SYDNEY, March 18 (Xinhua) -- A growing number of Australian children are failing to meet national swimming benchmarks, raising concerns about water safety and rising drowning rates.
A report by Royal Life Saving Australia (RLSA) found that 48 percent of Year 6 students, or 11- to 12-year-olds, can not swim 50 meters or tread water for two minutes, key survival skills recommended by Australia's national guidelines.
By Year 10, 39 percent still lack these abilities, with little improvement observed beyond Year 7, according to the report.
During the 2024-2025 summer, 104 people drowned across Australia, a 5 percent increase from the previous year, with a lack of swimming skills cited as a major factor. Ten of these drownings involved children under 14, government statistics showed.
RLSA Chief Executive Justin Scarr warned that Australia risks raising a generation with poor swimming abilities, partly due to the high cost of lessons, leaving them without essential water safety skills. One in 10 children aged five to 14 has never had a swimming lesson.
Schools are also struggling to fill the gap. While swimming programs are available in all states, their quality and accessibility vary, Scarr said, citing the report which found that 31 percent of schools don't offer learn-to-swim programs, often due to cost, staffing shortages, or time constraints. Additionally, one in four schools no longer holds swimming carnivals, and where they do, half of the students don't participate.
"It is very concerning from a drowning prevention point of view that these kinds of minimum skills, and that's what they are, minimum, aren't even being met," Amy Peden, a senior research fellow at the University of New South Wales' school of population health, was quoted as saying.
RLSA highlighted economic disparities, noting that students in wealthier areas and private schools are far more likely to receive swimming lessons than those in lower-income communities.
To address the issue, the organization was advocating for increased funding for school and holiday swim programs, targeted grants for vulnerable groups, expanded lifesaving courses, and improved access to public swimming pools and facilities. ■
