Swim Star & Specialism Awards

We are pleased to offer a suite of comprehensive awards to support, assess, and celebrate school swimming.

How to Access the Resources

All award criteria, progress trackers, and certificate templates are hosted on our secure Dropbox folder.

• Buckinghamshire Schools: Access and download all resources free of charge. If you do not have the password, please contact us with your school name to request it.

• Schools Outside of Buckinghamshire: Please get in touch with us to discuss licensing and access to these award resources.

The Swim Star Awards Scheme

Designed in perfect alignment with National Curriculum requirements, the Swim Star Awards cover a complete range of aquatic skills—from fundamental water confidence and stroke development to Self-Rescue, Mini Polo, and Synchronised Swimming. Elements of each of these areas are integrated into every single award stage.

Why Choose Swim Star?

Because the awards directly mirror National Curriculum standards and cover a broad range of aquatic activities, you can easily plan your entire school swimming curriculum around this scheme. Progress is based entirely on pupil ability (stage, not age).

How to Use the Scheme

• Sequential Progression: The awards run from Swim Star 1 to 7. While the stages are progressive, the individual activities within each stage can be taught and assessed in any order.

• Assessment, Not Just Checklists: Use the scheme as an active assessment tool to celebrate personal achievements, rather than just a “tick-sheet” exercise.

• Flexible Learning: Progression shouldn’t stop if a pupil struggles with a single criterion. If a child finds a specific skill difficult, let them move on to other areas of the next stage while continuing to practice the trickier skill at their own pace.

The Benefits

• Easy Data Tracking: Streamlines how staff record and share pupil progress with parents, keeping you compliant with National Curriculum reporting.

• New Opportunities: For pupils who already swim outside of school, these awards introduce them to exciting new aquatic disciplines they might not otherwise try.

• A Collaborative Approach: Connects pupils, school staff, leisure providers, and swim teachers under a single, shared goal—making school swimming fun, aligned, and successful.

Available Resources (via Dropbox)

Once you have logged into the password-protected Dropbox, you will find the resources grouped by category below.

1. Core Swim Star Awards

• Swim Star Criteria

• Swim Star Pupil Progress Chart

• Swim Star Certificate Templates

2. Splash Awards

• Splash Awards Criteria

• Splash Awards Certificates

3. Water Safety Awards

• Swim Star Water Safety Criteria

• Swim Star Water Safety Certificates

4. Water Polo & Synchronised Swimming Awards

• Water Polo Award Criteria

• Water Polo & Synchronised Swimming Certificates