YourTeenCan'tSwim:HowtoHandleItWithoutShameorDrama[2026]

It's summer, school camps are coming up, and your thirteen-year-old has never swum a lap. Maybe you've postponed it for years, a waiting list held you back, or school swimming stopped before your child got the chance. However it happened: you are not alone, it's not too late, and there is a path that works. For parents of teens who can't swim yet, we outline how to talk about it without shame, what lesson formats are available, and how to work together towards the diploma.

You Are Not Alone: Late Starters Are No Longer Uncommon

The image of swimming lessons is persistent: toddlers floating around an instructor with a swim band. Having a child of twelve or fourteen who still can't swim can make you feel like an exception. The numbers tell a different story.

More and More Children Leave Primary School Without a Diploma

The number of children without a swimming diploma more than doubled between 2018 and 2022, from 6 to 13 percent, reports the consumer program Radar. Research by the Mulier Institute commissioned by the National Council for Swimming Safety (NRZ) also shows that 9 percent of children aged 6 to 16 had no diploma in 2020. In a class of thirty, there are on average two or three who cannot swim, sometimes more. Your child is not an exception; it is part of a national trend.

Why This Generation More Often Can't Swim

The causes are known. School swimming is disappearing: in 2024 only 23 percent of municipalities still offered it, down from 32 percent in 2020. Furthermore, the COVID years caused gaps in lesson schedules, many families face months on waiting lists, and costs form a barrier. Sometimes a parent can't swim themselves, and the swimming lessons just never happened. The NRZ is working with municipalities on a roadmap to get more children into swimming lessons.

This Is Also a Known Problem Outside the Netherlands

Not being able to swim is not a typically Dutch problem. Worldwide, an estimated 300,000 people drown annually, reports the World Health Organization (WHO). Drowning is the third leading cause of death among children aged 5 to 14, and children and young people up to 29 years old make up more than half of all drowning victims. Boys and men are twice as likely to drown as girls and women. Having a teen who can't swim is both a practical problem and a safety risk, in any country.

What It Means for a Teen Who Can't Swim

The Missing Social Passport

Radar aptly calls a swimming diploma a social passport. Without that passport, things naturally fall away: a swimming party, a school camp with an afternoon at the pool, water sports on vacation, swimming laps with friends. Teens notice this keenly and often withdraw from activities involving water.

Shame and Hiding: The Silent Problem

The biggest barrier is rarely the water itself; it is the shame. Young people who can't swim prefer to say they don't feel like it rather than admit they can't. They make excuses for school camps, pretend to have a cold at a swimming party, and avoid the topic. As a parent, you often notice this only late. So first acknowledge that your child has told you or that you found out; that is already a step.

The Real Risk: Open Water and Peer Pressure

The consequences are more serious than a missed party. New CBS figures on drownings, published via the NRZ, show that the risk of drowning among 10 to 20-year-olds born outside Europe is almost 14 times higher than among peers with Dutch origin. In the teenage years, risk moments accumulate: jumping off the jetty because everyone does it, a boat trip without a life jacket, a bet on who can swim the farthest. For those without swimming skills, that combination of peer pressure and open water is life-threatening.

Good News: Teens Learn to Swim Faster Than Toddlers

What Works in Their Favor

A five-year-old toddler first has to learn to listen, discover their body, and get used to water on their face. A thirteen-year-old teen has body control, understands instructions, and can practice exercises at home. Fear may still be present sometimes, but it is easier to discuss than with a toddler. Chances are your child will progress faster than a toddler: the body cooperates, the mind cooperates, and often there is finally a personal reason to want to swim.

How Much Time Should You Expect?

There are no national figures on how many lessons teens need; swimming schools do not centrally track this. For comparison: young children need on average about 42 clock hours for the A diploma, reports Radar. Many swimming schools see that older children need less lesson time, although it varies per child. Have a swimming school make a realistic estimate during a trial lesson, and expect months, not years.

Different from Toddler Swimming Lessons: Goals Instead of Games

Swimming lessons for teens look different than for toddlers. Less splashing, more technique: floating, breaststroke, backstroke, water treading. The lessons are more goal-oriented and the school monitors progress more strictly. This suits teens, who are more motivated by visible progress than by a sticker.

How to Discuss It Without Shame or Drama

Choose the Right Moment

Not in the car on the way to a party, not in front of siblings, not right after the topic came up during an argument. Choose a calm moment at home and start with your own role: "I also postponed this for a long time" or "We didn't have swimming lessons at home either." By simply naming it, you take the weight off.

First Ask What Your Child Wants

The strongest motivation comes from within. Is there a school camp your child wants to attend? A group of friends going to the pool? A vacation near a lake? Ask what would change if swimming succeeds, and listen without pushing. A teen who decides themselves that it’s time approaches lessons very differently than one who is pushed.

Make It a Plan, Not a Command

Find a swimming school together, schedule a trial lesson, and agree on who arranges what. Give your child ownership: they can choose between a teen group or private lessons, and between two nearby swimming schools. Your role is to arrange and encourage, not to control.

Which Lesson Format Suits a Late Starter

Catch-up Swimming Lessons and Transition Classes

Many swimming schools and municipalities offer catch-up swimming lessons: classes for children aged about seven and older who do not yet have a diploma. Sometimes financial aid is available: the Youth Fund for Sports & Culture contributes to swimming lessons if it’s not possible at home, and many municipalities have their own child package or city pass. Ask at the local pool about options for older children; these groups really exist, even for sixteen-year-olds.

Teen Group or Private Lessons

If shame is the biggest barrier, private lessons are a good start: no one is watching, the pace is set by the student, and after a few lessons the ice is often broken. Some swimming schools have special teen groups with peers. Private lessons cost more than group lessons, but the barrier is lower; many parents combine a short private start with a group continuation.

What to Ask the Swimming School

Bring these points to the first conversation: group size (smaller is better for a late starter), experience with children who start late, how the school reports progress, and whether a trial lesson is possible. A school that tracks progress in a student tracking system can show you and your child what is already possible. That works better than a vague comment on the side.

How to Help at Home Without Acting Like the Swimming Teacher

Getting Used to Water Without Lesson Goals

Go swimming together occasionally, without it being about diplomas. Blowing bubbles, floating on the back, jumping from the edge, looking underwater: these are all skills that will come up later in lessons. The most important thing is that water becomes a place where your child feels comfortable again, not a place of performance pressure.

Track Progress, Even in Between

Visible progress motivates teens more than any compliment. Swimmigo divides the swimming journey into seven levels with 86 concrete skills, from getting used to water to diploma. Your child can see per exercise what they can already do and what the next step is. The app is free, works in five languages, and is used worldwide; on the page for parents you can see how it works. This way, swimming lesson progress becomes something you share together, instead of something that happens at the pool without you seeing it.

Safety in Open Water: The Same Rules Everywhere

Rules That Apply Everywhere

Until the diploma is earned, one rule applies above all: never in open water without supervision. No lakes, rivers, or sea without an adult who can swim present. Also: no jokes about going underwater, no bets on who can swim the farthest, and always wear a life jacket on boat trips. These rules apply in the Netherlands, France, Australia, everywhere. The WHO calls teaching basic swimming skills to school-age children one of the proven measures to prevent drowning; until that lesson is completed, supervision is the only real protection.

Vacation Is the Biggest Risk Moment

On vacation, temptation is greatest and structure is least. A pool at the hotel, a lake at the campsite, a sea with currents: it’s all different from the pool at home. Agree in advance what your child may and may not do, even if you are with them. And remember that a life jacket does not replace swimming lessons, but it can make the difference between a bad experience and an accident.

Conclusion

A teen who can't swim is no longer rare, and it is never too late to start. Discuss it without shame, choose a lesson format that fits, and track progress together; teens often pick it up faster than you think. Until the diploma is earned, the same rule applies everywhere: never in open water without supervision.

Want to know more about how swimming lesson progress works and how to best track it? Check out the seven levels of Swimmigo, read how the student tracking system works, or see what Swimmigo offers for parents and instructors.

Sources

• Radar (AVROTROS): Swimming Lessons for Your Child: A Dive into the Deep (and the Wallet), October 20, 2025
• National Council for Swimming Safety: Mulier Institute Research: Swimming Skills 2020, February 11, 2022
• Mulier Institute: Swimming Skills 2020: Swimming Diploma Ownership of Children, 2022
• National Council for Swimming Safety: New CBS Figures Emphasize the Importance of Continued Attention to Swimming Safety, July 24, 2026
• National Council for Swimming Safety: New Roadmap Offers Opportunities for More Children in Swimming Lessons, July 28, 2026
• World Health Organization (WHO): Drowning Fact Sheet, accessed August 2026
• Youth Fund for Sports & Culture: Swimming Lessons, accessed August 2026