The Secondary Schools Team Relay Championships organiser is Tim Hartley

The Secondary Schools Team Relay Championships is the longest running championship series organised by the ESSA.
It is open to secondary school aged swimmers from across England, including state, public and home-schooled students.
Teams compete in 4x50m Freestyle and Medley relays.
The Championships is run as a national final with competing schools determined by the fastest times achieved in a qualifying round organised by the ESSA divisions.
Some divisions hold multiple qualifying galas in different locations to ensure a wide participation.
In 2022 we had two thousand and ninty-nine teams from over three hundred schools that participated in the qualifying round in twenty separate galas across the country.

2025 Event

Sat 15^th November 2025 - 67^th Secondary Schools' Team Championships
Timings (TBC):
09:30 – 12:40 : Pool Familiarisation
12:50 : Opening Ceremony
13:00 – 17:00 : Competition Events (Start - Estimated Finish)
Medal/Award presentations will occur immeadiately after each block of Finals
This will provide a short break for officials and those not involved in the presentations

Venue : The Sandwell Aquatics Centre in Birmingham.

See Division pages for details of Qualification round events in your area.

National Finals:

Qualifiers

The Consolidated results from the qualification round is in checking and the list of qualifiers and reserves is now available.

Secondary Schools Team Relay Championships 2025 - Divisional Round Results (V2.4)

Secondary Schools Team Relay Championships 2025 - Qualifiers & Reserves (V2.4)

The Qualifiers pack:

The event handbook contains important information, and answers many common questions, about the event including timings, travel information, and so much more.

ESSA Secondary Schools Team Championships Handbook 2025 (V2 - Updated 17/10/2025)

Please read this carefully in preparing for and attending the event.
Please do not email questions to the organisers until you have read this handbook - the answer is probably in there, but we are always happy to answer questions or provide clarification where it is not.
It is ESSENTIAL that qualifiers and reserves complete the information required in the letter within the Qualifiers (and Reserves) pack as soon as possible, and by 8^th November at the latest.

NOTE: The qualifiers pack is a zip file containing a number of documents.
If you download on a mobile you may see only one file (typically the Conditions of the championships). To see the full contents you may have to go to your downloads folder

A risk assessment has been provided for the competition, schools should perform their own risk assessment for anciliary activities such as travel and overnight stays.

Secondary Schools Team Championships - Risk Assessment 2025

No Medical/Permission form is included this year as schools are expected to address these issues as a standard part of their away-trip procedures.

There are a number of different forms for finalists to complete - these are in the qualifiers pack:

The Acceptance form is an online form (link in the letter within the pack) – this needs to be completed by 8^th Nov to secure your place.
As soon as you fill this in and click ‘submit’, the details are sent electronically to us.
The Accreditation form for Team managers/Adults accompanying the team (link in the letter within the pack) – this needs to be filled in for each adult.
- The form needs to be completed for any adult that form part of your team delegation i.e. that will be with the swimmers in the balcony seating area or poolside.
  - Provide your DBS number and date of issue
    - Provide a photo of your school photo ID or
    - an authorisation letter from the head teacher:
      - stating you are a teacher at the school or
      - in the case of a non-staff member (e.g., a parent/club coach) stating they had authorisation to supervise the swimmers on the school's behalf
    - With regards to the safeguarding training, we are asking that adults who are directly in contact with the swimmers provide evidence to confirm that safeguarding training has been undertaken (within the last 3 years)
      - Acceptable evidence includes a photocopy/screenshot of a suitable training certificate or an email from the school confirming the adult has conducted such training
- Provide a passport style photo
  - Without completing the form adults will not receive a pass and security will prevent them entering into the swimmer areas (changing rooms / swimmer balcony seating / poolside).

The Swimmer Nomination Form Swimmer Nomination Form:

- Please complete this form by Thursday 13th November at the latest.
- Complete one form for each team entered
- The same form can be used for both Medley and Freestyle relays for a team, or can be submitted seperately
- Updates can be submitted at any time
- The latest update will override any previous submissions
- we do not need to know the order in which your swimmers compete
- As long as the swimmer is in the list submitted, we don't need to know if you've swapped in a reserve (the form caters for up to 6 swimmers in each team)

Additionally, there is a merchandise order form (not included in the pack - see the Merchandise page (click HERE)).

...further details/downloads and links will follow shortly.

The DRAFT Pool Familiarisation Schedule will be available about a week before the event. It is based on information provided on arrival times.
Please ensure you have provided your arrival details in your acceptance form, or by subsequent email to the organisers.

Officials

This is not a licensed meet. We are currently short of a few volunteer Officials to help make the event run smoothly
We invite officials to sign up to officiate at the national finals using the following link: https://forms.office.com/e/Bj6sc5JUiH
Expenses will be paid in accordance with our expenses policy:

Expenses Policy - Officials

Expenses Form - Officials

Merchandise

Details of event merchandise (T-shirts, Hoodies, Hats, Towels & swim bags) is available from the the Merchandise page.

The deadline for pre-ordered personalised t-shirts and hoodies for this event is Monday 3^rd November. Pre-orders for personalised merchandise is now OPEN
We will also have some non-personalised merchandise available to purchase on the day at the championships. Stock is limited and is sold on a 'first-come' basis.

Photography

Malaper photography will be attending the event. Photography commissions can be pre-ordered. Slots are limited and sold on a 'first-come' basis.

Spectator tickets

Spectator space is limited. This year we are selling spectator tickets in advance - see the event handbook for details.
A few may be available on the day, but are not guaranteed.
Spectators will be required to show their tickets which will be sent to their email upon entry to the spectator balcony.

Parking

Car, Minibus and Coach Parking
- Due to new venue rules, parking is unavailable at the Sandwell Aquatics Centre for schools or spectators.
- Parking is available a 20-minute walk away at the Harry Mitchell Sandwell site (Harry Mitchell Park, Coopers Ln, Smethwick B67 6AW) as well as surrounding roads.
- Schools will be able to drop off teams in the drop off area before moving on to find parking.
- Designated disabled parking bays are located at the front of the building alongside the drop of area.
  - Please ensure you have a valid disabled badge on display when parking in one of our designated disabled and accessible parking spaces.

Start Lists, Results and Streaming

Start Lists, Results and Streaming of the event will be available from our live event page [the streaming remains available from last year's event].
Livestreaming is produced by Photography by
There are links to the results of previous years' championships and the championship Records at the bottom of this page.

Regulations

Regulations for the event were revised in January 2025

Secondary Schools Team Championships Regulations (Jan 2025)

ESSA Technical Rules of Swimming 2023

A new event has been added to allow for mixed teams - please see the regulations for details

For the national finals in November 2025, we expect to invite the top 24 schools in single gender events, and the top 10 schools in mixed gender events. There will also be events for para-swimmers, who should contact their divisional representative to advise of their interest in participating.

Ages are calculated at midnight 31st August/1st September at the beginning of academic year of competition:
e.g. for competitions in school year 2025/25, swimmers must have been born in the date range below (inclusive) to participate in that age-group's events:
NOTE: Nominal school years are provided for information only and will not apply if a student is outside of the normal intake age for the year e.g. if they have retaken a year.

	Date of Birth		Age		Normally School year		Date of Birth range
Age Group	Latest	Earliest	From	To	From	To	Date of Birth range
Junior	31/08/14	01/09/12	11	12	7	8	01/09/12 - 31/08/14
Inter.	31/08/12	01/09/10	13	14	9	10	01/09/10 - 31/08/12
Senior	31/08/10	01/09/07	15	17	11	13	01/09/07 - 31/08/10

Qualification Round:

See Divisional Pages and the map below for qualification round events in your area.
See the Frequently Asked Questions below for further information about the event - including how to enter

Frequently Asked Questions:

Who can enter?

This is a team event where swimmers represent their school rather than their club. It is open to all secondary school aged swimmers. All schools are automatically affiliate to ESSA on entry to any of its events; there is no need to pre-register or affiliate. Home schooled swimmers that wish to participate should contact their division representative.
Para swimmers represent their division.

How does my school enter?

Entry forms are made available by each division for their qualifying gala. These forms are often emailed by division representatives to schools that have previously participated or expressed an interest, and are also made available via the division's webpage of this website. Schools may enter only ONE qualifying gala. Some qualifying round galas permit a school to enter more than one team in each age group, but this is subject to the organisers discretion and only the nominated A team will be eligible for progression to the national finals.
Para teams are organised by the division's representative, so if you have a swimmer in your school who is interested in competing, please contact your division representative.

When is the qualifying event in our area?

All qualification galas are published on the relevant division's webpage of this website.
Schools are not restricted to entering galas in their own division (or county where events are organised at a county level), however the organiser may place restrictions on out of area schools to ensure safe and efficient running of their gala.

What events are included?

Teams compete in 4x50m Freestyle and Medley relays. These are always run short-course (in a 25m pool) during the qualifying round. National Finals are usually run long-course (in a 50m pool); however, this is subject to the availability of a suitable pool. There are three age groups (Junior, Intermediate and Senior), each of which is run as a Boys and a Girls event.
In addition, Divisions can enter Para teams, run as separate Boys and Girls events, with a range of disability point to accommodate a wide range of para swimmers.

Can we enter a team with an underage swimmer?

No, swimmers must be within the applicable age range for their age group. ESSA events are based on age groups that set upper and lower ages for swimmers. Ages are based on ages at the start of the academic year (31st August/1st September).

Can we change swimmers between rounds?

Yes, A team can be changed between the qualifying round and the national finals. Further changes can be made between the heats and finals of an event within the National Finals gala. Also, whilst each age group can participate in a Freestyle and Medley relay, there is no requirement for these to use the same four swimmers.