Head of Aquatics Competency

Organisation: Swim England
Salary: £60,000 - £70,000
Location: SportPark, Loughborough (minimum 2x days onsite) - with regular national and occasional international travel
Contract type: Permanent (Full time)
Closing date: 14 January 2026
Interview date: 23 January 2026
Job Description: About Us

Swim England is the recognised national governing body for swimming, artistic swimming, diving and water polo in England. We help people learn how to swim, enjoy the water safely, and maximise their potential in aquatic sport at every level — from community participation to world-class performance.

Through our Community Participation and Health directorate, we work with partners across education, leisure, health and local government to grow opportunities in aquatics, improve water safety and support lifelong engagement in swimming.

About the Role

We are seeking a strategic and collaborative Head of Aquatics Competency to lead Swim England’s aquatics competency work strand within the One Swim England strategy. This senior leadership role is central to our ambition that every person can enjoy swimming and aquatics confidently and competently.

You will provide strategic direction and operational leadership across Learn to Swim, School Swimming and Water Safety, overseeing delivery, budgets and impact. Working closely with internal teams, national partners, academics and government stakeholders, you will influence policy, investment and practice across the aquatics system to drive meaningful and sustainable change.

Key Responsibilities

In this role you will:

- Strategically lead the aquatics competency work strand, including objectives, delivery plans, operations and budgets.

- Oversee Swim England’s Learn to Swim Framework and Programme to grow participation and improve diversity.

- Lead Swim England’s contribution to national water safety and drowning prevention agendas.

- Design, develop and oversee Swim England’s strategy and approach to School Swimming.

- Collaborate with government departments, national partners and agencies across education, sport, physical activity, leisure and water safety to influence policy and investment.

- Engage with academic partners to inform practice across physical literacy, pedagogy, motor learning and outdoor education.

- Work collaboratively across Swim England directorates to connect delivery across clubs, leisure operators, health structures, swim schools and local authorities.

- Provide strong leadership and line management across the aquatics competency team.

- Share collective accountability with the Director of Community Participation and Health and other strand leaders for directorate-wide outcomes.

- Provide collaborative leadership to National Development Managers to ensure joined-up delivery.

Skills and Experience

Essential

- Knowledge of government strategy and priorities across school sport, physical education and water safety.

- Experience leading a work strand and associated programmes in a development context.

- Experience measuring impact using quantitative and qualitative methods.

- Excellent written, verbal and presentation communication skills.

- A collaborative leadership style, able to work laterally and vertically.

- Strong organisational skills and ability to prioritise effectively.

- Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to provide confident, consistent leadership across complex stakeholder systems.

Please be advised that we cannot offer visa sponsorship and that you must have right to work in the UK to apply or be considered for this role. If you are a non-UK/EU National, you must have an appropriate working Visa to undertake employment. You must also be working within the UK to apply or be considered for this role, due to the public liability insurance Swim England holds.

Swim England is committed to inclusion and embracing the spirit of all equalities legislation. As a Disability Confident Employer, we actively encourage applications from disabled people. We recognise that the diversity of our workforce is not reflective of today’s society and we are currently operating a pilot scheme whereby applicants from ethnically diverse backgrounds can opt into our guaranteed interview scheme. Candidates that have opted into the scheme will be guaranteed an interview provided that they have demonstrated, within their application, that they meet the essential criteria for the role. When emailing the CV and cover letter, applicants from ethnically diverse backgrounds are encouraged to state they wish to ‘Opt In’ to the scheme.

Where possible, Swim England will always make reasonable adjustments for accessibility to anyone who requires it. If you would like any of the documentation in a different format or would like to apply in a different way please get in touch. All appointments will be made on merit, following a fair and transparent process, in line with the Equality Act 2010. However, the organisation may employ positive action where candidates from underrepresented groups can demonstrate their ability to perform the role equally well.

Swim England is also committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.
How to apply: If you feel you have the suitable skills and attributes for this position then we would love to read your application, detailing how you meet the brief, and how you believe you’re the right candidate for this opportunity. Please send your cover letter and CV to: applytoswimengland@macildowie.com