Swim and Survive Fund supports adult swimming program in Gingin

Thanks to support from Royal Life Saving WA’s Swim and Survive Fund, Gingin Swim School (GINSWIM) successfully delivered a six-week adult Learn to Swim program during Term 1. 

Held every Sunday morning from 9 March to 13 April 2025, the program was led by GINSWIM instructors Karen Grant and Elorah Gresele. The initiative welcomed 10 adult participants with varying levels of swimming ability, including complete beginners and those seeking to improve their survival skills and stroke technique. 

The weekly one-hour lessons focused on building water confidence, developing basic swimming techniques, and equipping participants with essential water safety knowledge. For many of the participants, this was their first opportunity to learn to swim, with financial and social barriers previously preventing access to lessons. 

Karen said the outcomes of the program were incredibly rewarding. 

“Two participants were non swimmers and achieved putting their face in the water and a front glide assisted with a noodle. The rest could swim to save themselves only- they could paddle to the edge of the pool; however, they had no stroke technique.”  

By the end of the program, most of the participants were able to achieve stage five or six, and were successfully swimming 25 metres each of freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and survival backstroke. Some were even introduced to sidestroke! 

The program generated strong community interest, with three additional participants joining midway through the term. Participants only needed to cover pool entry fees, with the Swim and Survive Fund covering all instruction costs. 

Instructor Elorah Gresele said the response from the community was overwhelmingly positive. 

“We thoroughly enjoyed teaching adults, and it was rewarding to see their progress and how much they have achieved over the six weeks of lessons. We had a lot of interest and great feedback from the adult participants, they have asked for us to continue the lessons next year outside of the grant funding as part of our regular swim school program." 

Programs like this play a crucial role in regional communities, where opportunities for adult swimming lessons are limited, and people are two and a half times more likely to be involved in a drowning incident than those in metropolitan Perth.   

This initiative was made possible through Royal Life Saving WA’s Swim and Survive Fund, which supports accessible and inclusive aquatic education programs across Western Australia. 

For more information about Royal Life Saving WA’s Swim and Survive Fund, and Access and Equity programs, visit the link below.