Fife School
Aquatics Group
FIFE SCHOOL AQUATIC GROUP (FSAG) is a dynamic partnership between East Fife ClubSport, Fife Sports and Leisure Trust/Cupar Sports Centre, Bell Baxter High School (BBHS), Active Schools and Cupar and District Swimming Club.
BACKGROUND
Swimming is the second-most participated in activity after walking and it can save lives, but swimming was dropped from the school curriculum over 15 years ago and pre-covid estimates were 40% of pupils leave primary school unable to swim. FSAG ensures children and young people in the Cupar area have a link to swimming and our local pool at Cupar Sports Centre. The centre suffered cuts to opening hours in 2019 and during covid, but gained opening hours back in 2023 at a time when in other areas pools are under threat. In bringing training courses to our rural area, we are also helping to improve opportunities and employability for our young people.
The project won a Sustainability Award in 2022 for improving delivery of a sport and encouraging community participation.
PROJECT AIMS
The project’s aims are to deliver increased training and employability, to boost provision of water safety/swimming lessons locally while also supporting the local leisure industry and our community pool and leisure centre.
The work has set-up Cupar Sports Centre as a training hub in partnership with the swimming club, which has a clubhouse behind the centre that acts as a dry-side classroom.
2021-22
During the academic year of 2021-22, we funded a pilot that successfully introduced and qualified local high school pupils in aquatics and lifeguarding. The Sports Leaders course included 8 weeks aquatics training; they then went on to deliver water safety lessons to pupils at primary schools in the BBHS catchment area. In partnership with Active Schools we helped deliver swimming as part of a summer holiday camp to primary pupils. We then offered pupils (16+) the opportunity to take the national lifeguarding (NPLQ) and swim teaching (SSTQ) qualifications.
2022-23
With BBHS PE department, we evolved the project to deliver swimming back into PE for all S1 pupils, which was a huge success and allowed us to offer swimming to a significant number of pupils. Following on from the previous year, we also continued our work with the Sports Leaders and primary schools as well as offering the NPLQ and SSTQ courses.
2023-24
In partnership with the swimming club, our work with the NPLQ training broadened to include swimming support for pupils who were interested in employment opportunities in the leisure industry but who lack the necessary swimming ability. The work with the Sports Leaders and primary schools continued, but sadly we were not able to deliver S1 PE swimming due to timetabling and funding challenges.
2024-25
This year we were delighted to support a pilot run by Bell Baxter High School for pupils to take NPLQ training as part of a new course called Excellence in Sport. This was successful and the school plans to now carry this course forward. Two cohorts of Sports Leaders then took aquatics as part of their course and delivered water safety lessons to around 40 local primary school pupils. One primary school group had almost no swimmers and so this opportunity delivered a key life skill.
When the Sports Leaders were asked what sport they liked the most in the Sports Leader course, particularly in terms of then delivering to primary schools, they said they preferred swimming. Without our project, none of the pupils involved would have access to the pool.
2025-26
In the coming year, we plan to continue offering aquatics training as part of the Sports Leader course, with delivery of primary school water safety sessions. We are in the process of working on new ideas of how we can work with schools to include water safety and swimming as part of their training, offering key life skills and employment opportunities to young people.
PROJECT OUTCOMES
Over 3 academic years, with £25500, we have delivered swimming to 525 children/young people = 445 (199 girls and 246 boys) + 80 children (Active Schools summer camp).
Qualified – 41 (18 girls and 23 boys; see below)
Employment (confirmed 2021-24) – 16 (9 girls and 7 boys; see below)
S1 PE swims, 281 (132 girls and 149 boys)
Sports Leaders, 74 (27 girls and 47 boys)
Primary School water safety with Sports Leaders, 49 (22 girls and 27 boys)
Summer camp 4 x groups of 20 in pool for 1 hr, 80 girls and boys
Qualified lifeguards, 32 (10 girls and 22 boys)
Qualified swim teachers, 9 (8 girls and 1 boy)
Employment achieved (confirmed as of July 2024):
Total 16 (9 girls and 7 boys)
NPLQ Lifeguards: 11 (5 girls and 6 boys)
SSTQ Swim Teachers: 5 (4 girls and 1 boy)
WITH GREAT THANKS TO OUR SUPPORTERS
2024-25
The Bruce Charitable Trust
Cupar Rotary Club
The St Andrews Ball
Howe of Fife Rotary Club
Cervus Trust, administered by Foundation Scotland
Arnold Clark Community Fund
St Andrews University Community Fund
2023-24
The Bruce Charitable Trust
Howe of Fife Rotary Club
Cupar Rotary Club
Kingdom Housing Community Initiative
2022-23
The Scottish Government’s Rural and Island Communities Idea into Action Fund, delivered by Inspiring Scotland
The Bruce Charitable Trust
Fife Properties
Essentia, administered by Foundation Scotland
2021-22
The Scottish Government’s Rural and Island Communities Idea into Action Fund, delivered by Inspiring Scotland