Virginia Woolf and Clive Bell in their swimsuits.
“I hired a gentlemans or ladies – it was bisexual – bathing dress, and swam far out … a drifting sea anemone”
Month: May 2014
We could become a nation of non-swimmers
Diving seal, Farne Islands, photo by Farne Island Divers
Britain could become a nation of non-swimmers if action is not taken to dramatically improve school access to facilities and lessons.
The University of East Anglia have published research showing that fifty one per cent of children aged seven to eleven in the UK cannot swim twenty five metres. This is despite the fact that it is a requirement of the national curriculum.
Twenty five metres is not very far to be able to swim. In Sweden for example children are expected to be able to swim 200 metres of which at least fifty metres should be on the back.
The problem is most acute in rural areas where small schools face problems of time and cost of transporting children to pools.
These non-swimming children will grow up to be non-swimming adults who in turn are unlikely to take their own children swimming and so we could indeed become a nation of non-swimmers.
JP and Me
Me and BBC Radio 4’s JP Devlin about to hit the water. A total and somewhat fearful non-swimmer just a few months ago JP can now swim a length of the pool doing breaststroke and is working on front crawl and backstroke.
He has been a delight to teach and is very brave and determined. He is also always prepared to try out my sometimes slightly odd ideas including jumping in, sitting dives, mushroom floats and spinning round in the water.
mindful swimming 