Duckling Awards

07/02/2016 All AwardsDuckling Awards are the next step on from the Discovery Duckling Awards.

They are designed to help toddlers enjoy learning to swim with help from their parents or guardians.

With Duckling Awards your child can work towards four different colourful Awards. Each Award has its own certificate and badge.

Duckling 1 will see children start to move by themselves in the water.

By Duckling 4 they will be jumping in, going underwater, floating and travel 10 metres without support.

Duckling Awards are great at promoting increased independence and water confidence to help prepare for Stage 1 of the Learn to Swim Framework.

Duckling 1

By completing this Award you should be able to:

1. Make a supervised safe entry with adult support if required.
2. Float on back with adult support behind the head without floatation equipment.
3. Blow bubbles at the water surface.
4. Wet the head without submersion.
5. Kick 5 metres on back with adult support.
6. Travel without adult support for 2 metres to a floating object.
7. Enter the pool, rotate and return to the side with adult support.
8. Exit the water safely with minimal adult support.

Duckling 2

By completing this Award you should be able to:

1. Make a sitting entry with adult support if required.
2. Rotate 180 degrees either using a log roll or an upright position, using floatation equipment and without adult support.
3. Submerge the face with confidence and without force under adult supervision.
4. Blow an object for a distance of 2 metres.
5. Travel 3 metres using arms and/or legs without adult support.
6. Move 5 metres along the rail or wall without adult support.
7. Enter the pool, rotate and return to the side with minimal adult support.
8. Exit the water safely with minimal adult support.

Learn to Swim Stage 1-7 Awards

07/08/2018 All AwardsThe Learn to Swim Stage 1-7 Awards are divided into progressive stages. They make up the core, national syllabus of learning to swim for primary school aged children.

They are designed to reward your child for their development of the essential aquatic skills they need to be confident, competent and safe in the water.

Each of the Learn to Swim Stage 1-7 Awards has a list of clear outcomes that need to be completed in order to gain each Award.

Learn to Swim Stage 1-7 Awards Outcomes

Stage 1

By completing this Award, with or without floatation equipment or support, you will be able to:

1. Enter the water safely.
2. Move forward for a distance of 5 metres, feet may be on or off the floor.
3. Move backwards for a distance of 5 metres, feet may be on or off the floor.
4. Move sideways for a distance of 5 metres, feet may be on or off the floor.
5. Scoop the water and wash the face.
6. Be comfortable with water showered from overhead.
7. Move from a flat floating position on the back and return to standing.
8. Move from a flat floating position on the front and return to standing.
9. Push and glide in a flat position on the front from a wall.
10. Push and glide in a flat position on the back from a wall.
11. Give examples of two pool rules.
12. Exit the water safely.

Stage 2

By completing this Award, with or without floatation equipment or support, you will be able to:

1. Jump in from poolside safely to a minimum depth of 1.0 metre.
2. Blow bubbles a minimum of three times rhythmically, with nose and mouth submerged.
3. Move from a flat floating position on the back and return to standing without support.
4. Move from a flat floating position on the front and return to standing without support.
5. Push from a wall and glide on the back – arms can be by the side or above the head.
6. Push from a wall and glide on the front with arms extended.
7. Travel using a recognised leg action with feet off the pool floor on the back for 5 metres, without the use of floatation equipment.
8. Travel using a recognised leg action with feet off the pool floor on the front for 5 metres, without the use of floatation equipment.
9. Perform a tuck to rotate from a flat floating position on the front, to a back floating position, then return to standing.
10. Perform a tuck to rotate from a flat floating position on the back, to a front floating position, then return to standing.
11. Perform a log roll from the back to the front.
12. Perform a log roll from the front to the back.
13. Exit the water without support.

Stage 3

By completing this Award, without floatation equipment or support, you will be able to:

1. Jump in from poolside and submerge to a minimum depth of 1.0 metre.
2. Sink, push away from wall and maintain a streamlined position.
3. Push and glide on the front with arms extended and log roll onto the back.
4. Push and glide on the back with arms extended and log roll onto the front.
5. Travel 5 metres on the front, perform a tuck to rotate onto the back and return on the back.
6. Fully submerge to pick up an object.
7. Correctly identify three of the four key water safety messages.
8. Push and glide and travel 10 metres on the back.
9. Push and glide and travel 10 metres on the front.
10. Perform a tuck float and hold for three seconds.
11. Exit the water without using steps.

Stage 4

By completing this Award, without floatation equipment or support, you will be able to:

1. Perform a sequence of changing shapes (minimum of three) whilst floating on the surface and demonstrate an understanding of floating.
2. Push and glide from the wall towards the pool floor.
3. Kick 10 metres backstroke (one item of equipment optional).
4. Kick 10 metres front crawl (one item of equipment optional).
5. Kick 10 metres butterfly on the front or on the back.
6. Kick 10 metres breaststroke on the front (one item of equipment optional).
7. Perform a head first sculling action for 5 metres in a flat position on the back.
8. Travel on back and log roll in one continuous movement onto front.
9. Travel on front and log roll in one continuous movement onto back.
10. Push and glide and swim 10 metres, choice of stroke is optional.

Stage 5

By completing this Award you will be able to:

1. Perform a flat stationary scull on the back.
2. Perform a feet first sculling action for 5 metres in a flat position on the back.
3. Perform a sculling sequence with a partner for 30-45 seconds to include a rotation.
4. Tread water for 30 seconds.
5. Perform three different shaped jumps into deep water.
6. Push and glide and swim 10 metres backstroke (performed to Swim England expected standards).
7. Push and glide and swim 10 metres front crawl (performed to Swim England expected standards).
8. Push and glide and swim 10 metres breaststroke (performed to Swim England expected standards).
9. Push and glide and swim 10 metres butterfly (performed to Swim England expected standards).
10. Perform a handstand and hold for a minimum of three seconds.
11. Perform a forward somersault.
12. Demonstrate an action for getting help.

Stage 6

By completing this Award you will be able to:

1. Give two examples of how to prepare for exercise and understand why it is important.
2. Sink, push off on side from the wall, glide, kick and rotate into backstroke.
3. Sink, push off on side from the wall, glide, kick and rotate into front crawl.
4. Swim 10 metres wearing clothes.
5. Push and glide and swim front crawl to include at least six rhythmical breaths.
6. Push and glide and swim breaststroke to include at least six rhythmical breaths.
7. Push and glide and swim butterfly to include at least three rhythmical breaths.
8. Push and glide and swim backstroke to include at least six regular breaths.
9. Push and glide and swim 25 metres, choice of stroke is optional (performed to Swim England expected standards).
10. Perform a ‘shout and signal’ rescue.
11. Perform a surface dive.

Stage 7

By completing this Award you will be able to:

1. Push and glide and swim 25 metres backstroke (performed to Swim England expected standards).
2. Push and glide and swim 25 metres front crawl (performed to Swim England expected standards).
3. Push and glide and swim 25 metres breaststroke (performed to Swim England expected standards).
4. Push and glide and swim 25 metres butterfly (performed to Swim England expected standards).
5. Perform a movement sequence (linking skills with strokes and sculls) of one minute duration, in a group of three or more, incorporating a number of the following skills:Sculling: head first, feet first
   Rotation: forward or backward somersault, log roll
   Floating: star on the front or on the back, tuck float, create own
   Eggbeater: Moving, lifting one or both arms out of the water
6. Perform a sitting dive or dive.
7. Push and glide and swim 50 metres continuously using one stroke (performed to Swim England expected standards).
8. Push and glide and swim 100 metres, using a minimum of three different strokes (performed to Swim England expected standards).
9. Tread water using eggbeater action for 30 seconds.
10. Complete an obstacle course (using minimum of four objects) with feet off the pool floor throughout.

A downloadable version of these outcomes for each of the Learn to Swim Stages is available in Learn to Swim’s online library.

Water Skills Awards

13/11/2015 All AwardsThe Swim England Water Skills Awards support intensive activity programmes and reward your child for successfully developing eight out of 10 skills across six grading levels, or six out of eight skills if your child has a disability.

The six Awards are represented by six colour-coded certificates and accompanying badges and focus on confidence, versatility, skills and endurance.

By the time your child succeeds at Water Skills 6, he or she should be able to swim 75 metres within two minutes using three different strokes.

Objectives of the Swim England Water Skills Awards

Water Skills 1

By completing this Award you will be able to perform eight of the following skills (or six for those with a disability), with the help of floatation equipment:

1. Enter shallow water from the poolside in a safe manner. Assistance may be provided via the steps or from the poolside.
2. Move across the pool with the water surface no lower than shoulder level.
3. Submerge the face in the water and blow bubbles for three seconds.
4. Push and glide from the poolside or bottom on the front and change to a resting or standing position.
5. Push and glide from the poolside or bottom on the back and change to a resting or standing position.
6. Travel on the back a minimum distance of 5 metres.
7. Travel on the front a minimum distance of 5 metres.
8. Rotate from the back to the front position and change to a resting or standing position.
9. Propel a floating object (e.g. a ball) for 3 metres by any method.
10. Demonstrate a flat or upright stationary floating position for 10 seconds.

Water Skills 2

By completing this Award you will be able to perform eight of the following skills (or six for those with a disability):

1. Enter shallow water unaided from a standing or sitting position without the use of steps.
2. Submerge the head completely and blow out under water for a minimum of three seconds.
3. Hold a tucked floating position for a minimum of five seconds (this may be on the front or back with the face submerged or kept out of the water).
4. Swim one width on the front using a crawl-type front paddle propulsive action.
5. Swim one width on the back using a crawl-type leg action.
6. Swim one width on the front or back using breaststroke type action.
7. Swim one width full stroke on the front or the back with arm recovery over the water.
8. Demonstrate a flat upright or upright floating position for 20 seconds.
9. Demonstrate a 360 degrees turn or roll – from a flat or upright position without making contact with the pool bottom.
10. Swim two widths without pausing using any stroke or strokes.

Water Skills 3

By completing this Award you will be able to perform eight of the following skills (or six for those with a disability):

1. Jump into water of at least full reach depth.*
2. Swim four widths without a pause using any stroke or strokes.
3. Submerge in shallow water and retrieve an object from the pool bottom using both hands.
4. Tread water out of standing depth using arms and/or legs for 20 seconds.
5. Swim two widths on the front demonstrating good technique.
6. Swim two widths on the back demonstrating good technique.
7. Swim a minimum of 10 metres showing three changes of direction without touching the side or bottom of the pool.
8. Scull head first for 5 metres.
9. Swim through a hoop submerged in water of shoulder depth.
10. Swim continuously for one minute using two different strokes and with good style.

* Full reach depth is the distance from feet to finger tips of hands reaching above the head.

Water Skills 4

By completing this Award you will be able to perform eight of the following skills (or six for those with a disability):

1. Jump into water of at least full reach depth* and swim 25 metres without touching the side or bottom of the pool.
2. Surface dive in water of at least full reach depth* demonstrating good technique.
3. Perform a forward somersault using a push and glide if necessary.
4. Swim breaststroke or front crawl for 25 metres showing good technique.
5. Swim backstroke for 25 metres showing good technique.
6. Scull head first for 5 metres and return sculling feet first.
7. Swim a minimum of 5 metres using a dolphin leg action.
8. Swim two widths of any stroke including a ‘correct’ turn complying with Swim England expected standards.
9. Enter water of at least full reach depth* and tread water for 20 seconds followed by a 25 metres swim.
10. Swim 5 metres underwater.

* Full reach depth is the distance from feet to finger tips of hands reaching above the head.

Water Skills 5

By completing this Award you will be able to perform eight of the following skills (or six for those with a disability):

1. Tread water for 30 seconds followed by a 25 metres swim, which includes passing through a submerged hoop.
2. Perform a backward somersault using a push and glide if necessary.
3. Perform a surface dive in water of at least full reach depth* followed by an underwater swim of at least 5 metres.
4. Swim 50 metres in 90 seconds.
5. Swim 25 metres using an inverted breaststroke or backstroke.
6. Perform a head first entry into water of at least full reach depth* and swim 25 metres of front crawl.
7. Swim one width of front crawl finishing with a forward somersault into the poolside and a push and glide away on the back or front.
8. Swim one width of butterfly.
9. Jump into water of at least full reach depth* attaining a good height and upright position in flight.
10. Swim 25 metres propelling a ball and maintaining close control throughout.

* Full reach depth is the distance from feet to finger tips of hands reaching above the head.

Water Skills 6

By completing this Award you will be able to perform eight of the following skills (or six for those with a disability):

1. Swim 75 metres within two minutes using three different strokes and demonstrating good technique.
2. Perform the following skills consecutively and without pause: head first scull for 5 metres; somersault; feet first scull for 5 metres and a 360 degree rotation in a vertical tucked position.
3. Swim three widths of front crawl showing two appropriate turns and demonstrating good technique.
4. Swim three widths of backstroke showing two backstroke turns and demonstrating good technique.
5. Swim three widths of breaststroke showing two breaststroke turns and demonstrating good technique.
6. Swim two widths butterfly.
7. Perform two jumps into water of at least full reach depth* gaining height and taking up a different position in flight selected from straight, tuck, pike, turning and somersault.
8. Propel a ball for a minimum distance of 25 metres controlling it throughout and demonstrating two changes of direction of atleast 90 degrees.
9. Plunge dive into water of at least full reach depth*, holding the glide for 5 metres.
10. Plunge dive into water of at least full reach depth* and tread water for one minute.

* Full reach depth is the distance from feet to finger tips of hands reaching above the head.