What age should kids start swimming lessons, and when can they stop?

Many learn-to-swim schools offer lessons for children as young as six months, but do they need to start then? (Pexels) Link copiedShareShare articleSwimming ability is declining in Australia, with almost half of year 6 students unable to swim 50 metres and tread water for 2 minutes — the minimum water safety requirements for their age. Bernadette Matthews, head of research, evaluation and insights at Life Saving Victoria, the organisation behind the finding in 2025, says it's a "really concerning" trend. She says reduced school participation in swimming and lower enrolments in private lessons is playing a big part — and putting lives at risk. "People can often view swimming as similar to any sport, but really swimming is a survival skill," says Dr Matthews. So when is the best time to enrol your child in swimming lessons? How long should they continue for? And what can you do if lessons aren't an option for you? Many learn-to-swim schools offer lessons for children as young as six months old. Amy Peden, a drowning prevention researcher at UNSW, says parents often feel pressure to get kids into lessons as early as possible. She says while starting lessons early can be "a nice thing to do" — helping a child get used to the water and create an opportunity for caregiver-child bonding, for example — research shows children don't start being able to master water confidence and basic aquatic locomotive skills until about four years of age, regardless of when lessons begin. Dr Peden says infants can't and shouldn't be expected to know how to swim or react appropriately in an emergency. "If you can afford [swimming lessons from six months], go for it, but my worry is money or interest will run out — either from parents or children or both," Dr Peden says. She says there are many things families can do outside of formal lessons to make sure kids are comfortable in water and know how to be safe. "Get in the water with them, making sure they are comfortable putting their head under water." You can then save money for when they are a "more appropriate age to retain those skills", she says. "Some kids at three are ready, others at six … it depends on their physical, mental and emotional maturity." Data indicates many children stop swimming lessons around the age of eight, Dr Matthew says, with barriers for families including financial challenges and a lack of interest. Royal Life Saving research shows nearly half of school children entering their teens are failing to attain basic swimming skills. "It might be because they're getting bored … or it's the pressures of different sporting activities as well." But Dr Matthews says kids should be continuing lessons into early adolescence to develop and master their swimming skills and water safety. "Children do really need to continue those lessons into early adolescent years to make sure they are progressing beyond basic swimming strokes — looking at things like endurance and survival swimming. "And making sure they can apply those skills in an open-water environment." Almost half of year 6 students are unable to swim 50 metres and tread water for 2 minutes. (Pexels) Dr Peden says parents often overestimate their child's swimming ability and therefore underestimate their drowning risk. "They might progress from dolphin to stingray level [in class] but what does that actually mean in practice?" She says swimming in a "comfortable" pool heated to 30 degrees Celsius, wearing goggles, with the teacher by their side for supervision and support, isn't the same as swimming at the beach or a river, or if they were to fall into a pool by accident. "It's very different having to use those skills in a real-world scenario," Dr Peden says. She says learning to swim is about more than skills, it's also about competency and literacy. "You need that knowledge and awareness of when to do different things and when to apply those skills. "That water safety knowledge — how to call for help, what to do if someone is in trouble, rescues that don't put yourself in danger." To know if your child is ready to complete swimming lessons, Dr Peden suggests assessing them against the national swimming and water safety benchmark. It breaks benchmarks down into three age categories: six, 12 and 17. For example, by the age of 12, a child should be able to swim continuously for 50 metres, and "rescue a person using a non-swimming rescue technique with non-rigid aids". "And keep in mind they are just minimum standards," Dr Peden says. Dr Matthews says the more that children are engaged in aquatic activities, formal or otherwise on a regular basis helps them to develop and master the skills. Cost of living and accessibility issues — for example people who live a regional area where the local pool is only open half the year — mean lessons aren't always an option. Learning to swim as an adult is difficult, but it's far from impossible. Here's where to start. Water familiarisati

What age should kids start swimming lessons, and when can they stop?

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