Identifying talent
Young people all develop at different rates, and the word ‘talent’ implies that you’ve either got it or you haven’t, which is not the case in swimming. Swimmers have a variety of careers and very few athletes have the perfect recipe from the start of the journey as they travel through various coaches, often clubs, move through the school system and develop socially, from children through to adults.
Development programmes:
There are several development programmes that athletes can be selected for:
- County development programme (led by each individual county) targeting 12 year olds
- Regional development programme (led by the region) targeting 13 year olds
- Masters development day (led by the region) targeting 18+ swimmers
- National Development Programme (led by Swim England) targeting 13/14 year olds.
- National Event Camps (led by Swim England) targeting 15/16 year olds.
- Swim England Junior Squad (led by Swim England) targeting up to 18 year olds.
- Performance Squad (led by Swim England) 22 years and under.
- To find out more about national talent programmes please click here.
Developing talent
County Associations and Swim England East Region run camps for selected 12 and 13 year olds respectively. This is the beginning of the talent pathway where swimmers may be selected to attend camps run by the England Talent Team.
(Updated 2023)
Regional Development Programme Programme and Selection Policy.
Any one attending the regional development programmes will be required to comply with the Swim England East Region Code of Conduct and Associated Statements, available to download below.
