Nofio Ysgol Programme Manager

Department: Nofio Ysgol Programme

Reports to: CEO

Salary: Up to £50k

Location: Hybrid – Office-based at Wales National Pool Swansea with remote homeworking and National Travel as required

Type: Full-Time role, 37 Hours per week

Note: Occasional work outside of core hours to support events and other organisational commitments

Swim Wales is the National Governing Body for aquatics in Wales, leading the development of swimming, diving, water polo, artistic swimming, and open water swimming. Guided by our vision of “Aquatics for Everyone, for Life,” we are committed to creating inclusive, safe, and sustainable environments where individuals, clubs, and communities can thrive.

Nofio Ysgol has been developed by Swim Wales as a structured, evidence-led programme to improve school swimming and water safety outcomes across Wales.

Current provision is inconsistent, with significant variation in access, quality, transport arrangements, delivery models and pupil attainment. Swim Wales data collected over the last four years highlights a concerning decline in national outcomes, with the Nofio Ysgol Gold pass rate recorded at 41% in 2022/23, 35% in 2023/24 and 39% in 2024/25. This programme responds directly to that challenge by proposing a coordinated national model that strengthens water competence, safety, confidence, physical literacy, wellbeing and lifelong participation.

An implementation plan for a new national School Swimming and Water Safety Programme was published on 24 July in line with Welsh Government’s First 100 Days commitment. Backed by a four-year Welsh Government investment, the programme will ensure that all Year 4 and Year 5 pupils are offered a minimum school swimming and water safety experience of 20 hours of swimming and water safety education.

Nofio Ysgol aligns key priorities for a healthier and more active Wales, improved public safety and drowning prevention, equitable access for all children, increased sport participation, and essential life-skill attainment. The programme also supports schools to deliver the Curriculum for Wales expectation that pupils have an experience in, on and around water.

The Nofio Ysgol Programme Manager will lead the national planning, coordination, delivery and evaluation of this four-year, Welsh Government-funded programme, working in partnership with the Welsh Government, local authorities, schools, leisure operators and wider aquatics partners.

The postholder will ensure that the programme is inclusive, evidence-led and outcomes-focused, removing barriers to participation and connecting school swimming provision into the wider Swim Wales aquatics pathway and vision of Aquatics for Everyone, for Life.

Lead the day-to-day management and national delivery of the Nofio Ysgol programme, ensuring that activity is delivered in line with Welsh Government expectations, Swim Wales priorities, agreed funding requirements, implementation milestones, monitoring arrangements and quality standards.

Manage programme planning, governance, risk, budgets, reporting and stakeholder engagement, ensuring that delivery partners have clear expectations, timely communication and the support required to provide a consistent and inclusive school swimming and water safety offer across Wales.

The successful candidate will work collaboratively across Swim Wales and with external partners to build a sustainable, accessible model that reduces barriers such as transport, facility availability, local delivery variation and additional access needs, while supporting progression from school swimming into wider aquatic opportunities, across our affiliated clubs, learn-to-swim pathways and lifelong participation.

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