School Grant Program

WE ARE NOT CURRENTLY ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR THE SCHOOL GRANT PROGRAM. PLEASE CHECK BACK LATER.

Every child should have the chance to learn basic swimming skills. Lifesaving Society Ontario administers the Swim to Survive® School Grant Program to help schools provide swimming skills training for their students. The goal is to have every one of Ontario’s Grade 3 students participate in Swim to Survive and every Grade 7 student participate in Swim to Survive+.

The Lifesaving Society needs help from partners to reach this goal Partners include school boards, schools, teachers; municipalities, pools and recreation facilities; and even transportation companies. Parents also play an important role in preparing their student(s) for participation in these programs.

The school-focused programs include:

  • Three (3), 1-hour in-water lessons that focus on the  Swim to Survive standard (ROLL entry, TREAD 1 minute, SWIM 50 metres). In-water training for the Swim to Survive+ program also includes lifesaving skills training.
  • Three (3), 1-hour in-classroom water safety lessons at school.

Swim to Survive School Grant funds are used to support in-water and classroom sessions to Grade 3 and Grade 7 students during regular school hours. Grant funds can be used to cover some of the cost of:

  • Transportation (bussing students between the school and the pool)
  • Swim to Survive pool instructor wages
  • Aquatic facility rental

For more information on how you can become a partner or to make a donation to the Swim to Survive School Grant Program, please email us.

The Lifesaving Society encourages all Ontario school boards to apply.

Eligibility

To participate in the School Grant Program, schools must be part of a publicly funded Ontario District School Board. Private schools are not eligible for the School Grant Program. Any Ontario school board with its own aquatic facilities OR any partnership of schools or school boards with aquatic facility operators (municipalities, private aquatic facilities, etc.) are eligible to apply for the Swim to Survive School Grant.

Applications for the Swim to Survive School Grant are typically accepted once per year during the application window – typically May through June. Applications are submitted through an online application database. Please note, that once an application is successfully submitted, funding is not guaranteed.

The Lifesaving Society will only fund applicants who have the capacity to fully execute the Swim to Survive and/or Swim to Survive+ programs successfully.

How to apply

To create an account and get started on an application, please contact Lifesaving Society’s Public Education Coordinator by phone (416-49-8844) or email. Be prepared to share the following details:

  • Full name, phone number and email address
  • Name of school/school board/aquatic facility
  • Address of the school/school board/aquatic facility

If you're an individual school, please check with your board before applying to avoid duplicate applications.

Approval process

A selection committee reviews applications and determines grant recipients based on the criteria outlined below. The Lifesaving Society will allocate grants across the six Ontario Ministry of Education regional areas:

  1. Toronto and Area
  2. Ottawa
  3. North Bay / Sudbury
  4. London
  5. Barrie
  6. Thunder Bay

Effort is made to allocate grants within each region to both rural and urban locations, separate and public-school boards, English and French school boards.

The Society aims to deliver survival swimming skills training to as many students as possible, but grant funding is limited. In reviewing applications, the selection committee evaluates:

  • Community partnership support including volunteer time, contributions from other organizations, cash or in-kind support from corporate sponsors or individual donors.
  • Reach – number of students estimated to participate in the program.
  • Historical use of Swim to Survive grants funds utilized in previous operational years.
  • Level of risk youth in the area face based on location, by population proxy.

Approved grants will be revoked if grant reimbursement reports and results are not received by the Lifesaving Society within the timeline specified by the approval notification letter.

Note: The Swim to Survive School Grant program is supported with public funds and may be audited by the Government of Ontario. All Swim to Survive School Grant applications are public documents that may be reviewed by auditors of boards of education, municipalities, or viewed by media. Partners are encouraged to maintain copies of all documentation related to the program.