When the secretary of state for Children and Family Servcies decided that every primary school child should have an entitlement to be able to swim 25 metres at Key Stage II, they also offered a funding package to assist Local Authorities to meet this package.

It was these circumstances which brought the primary and junior schools in Liverpool, Liverpool City Council and Your Travel Borough Wide together to work in partnership together to ensure that this entitlement was delivered.

In the first programme some 1500 children between the ages of 9 and 10 took part in a two week intensive course. They travelled to Park Road Everton, Picton Austin Rawlinson and Ellergreen swimming baths where a team of tutors headed up by Steve Parry the former Olympic Bronze medal winner provided swimming lessons.

During the second phase it was agreed that a demountable swimming pool (Skypool) be brought in and sited at Norman Pannel School where approximately 20 schools took part in the second phase.

Phase III of the programme was agreed following a presentation made by Stephen Tiffany and ourselves to the head teachers in the lace centre. This has seen the introduction of a regular programme where every primary / junior school in the Liverpool City Council area are transported to their designated swimming pool on a rotational basis.

Following the success of the Liverpool Transport Initiative St Helens decided to adopt the same transport strategy.