Following its launch last year, the second-ever National Baby Swimming Week is taking place from 16-22 October. Thousands of little ones, some merely a few days old, and their carers are taking the plunge and celebrating at classes across the UK and spreading the word on the benefits of baby swimming.
Baby swimming is academically proven to have a number of physical, mental and emotional benefits. For example, by the time they start school, children who have been to structured swimming classes in the early years were found to be ahead of their non-swimming peers by 11 months when it comes to oral expression.
As well as helping to significantly impact little ones’ strength and co-ordination , baby swimming has also been proven to boost confidence and stimulate positive emotions .
Swim school Water Babies’ surveyed its own clients and found that 92% of their former swimmers now aged 7-11 can swim 25m unaided, compared with 55% of the national population.
It was also found that 91% of former Water Babies swimmers now aged 7-8 meet the recommended physical activity guidelines, compared to the national average of 51% for 7-8 year olds.   The survey also revealed that 93% of Water Babies swimmers meet the physical activity guidelines for under 5s.
Penny & Paul Gordon, who run our multi-award winning Water Babies classes across Durham, Newton Aycliffe, Spennymoor, Bishop Auckland, Peterlee, Darlington and Northallerton, say: “Over the years we’ve seen countless babies and parents reap huge benefits from taking swimming classes with our highly qualified teachers. Sadly, far too many young children are missing out on all the positive benefits that come with swimming simply because they never learned this potentially life-saving skill.”
“Please ensure your child gets signed up for swimming lessons – the earlier the better! Here at Water Babies Durham & Darlington we draw on years of experience and we would love to help your little one embark on this fabulous journey!”
To find the benefits of baby swimming and to find out about classes, visit www.nationalbabyswimmingweek.org.uk
Telephone 01325 728728