East Midlands Ambulance Service has been looking at ways to improve services for people who are deaf or hard of hearing.

A meeting at the Peepul Centre in Orchardson Avenue was held in various languages, such as British Sign Language, Gujarati and remote captioning – where what is being said it immediately displayed on a screen for people to read.

Ian Trafford, a community paramedic based at Leicester's Gorse Hill Ambulance Station led a demonstration designed to educate people about the role and actions of the ambulance service when someone is experiencing chest pains.

He said: "The demonstration is an opportunity for us to show people what we do.

"This time our actions were the same but it really tested our communication skills. We asked for a volunteer to be the patient. We communicated with him with pictures, writing and used basic signs.

"It was a challenge and his feedback was valuable.

"While he felt communication was good, he reminded us written sentences need to be short, as many people who are deaf or hard of hearing have sign as their first language."

Mini health checks were also provided by the team.

Jaz Mann, Action Deafness manager, said: "This has been a great success with a number of people attending the event."

A centre which provides care for people with long-term mental health problems is meeting all the required standards, according to inspectors.

A team from the Government's health watchdog, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), visited Stewart House, in Narborough, in April.

In their report, inspectors said a relative of one patient told them: "The staff do involve my relative and their family in decisions.

"We attend regular multi- disciplinary meetings. The staff are very good at communicating with us all."

The relative of another patient said: "The staff here are professional and competent and are able to deal with very complex needs."

Inspectors said during their visit they saw patients being supported in promoting independence and that there was an extensive range of activities such as bowling, mystery tours and a variety of excursions.

They said: "Care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way which was intended to ensure patients' safety and welfare.

"We reviewed four care records and found all to be detailed and contained risk assessments related to patients' individual care needs."

Inspectors said patients were protected from abuse and that staff received appropriate training.

They also found an effective system to regularly assess and monitor the quality of service given to patients.

Teresa Smith, acting divisional director for adult mental health services at the Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust, said: "These excellent inspection results are very good news for clients and their relatives, and reflect the hard work and professionalism of staff.

"It is well deserved recognition of the challenges of caring for people with complex and long-term mental and physical health needs.

"We are really pleased our service and staff are recognised by both the CQC and by relatives of clients in such a positive way."

Labour supporters are casting their votes in a ballot which could decide who becomes a Member of the European Parliament next year.

Party members have been asked to vote to determine which of four candidates ranks highest in the ballot for the Euro elections in May.

Leicester's deputy mayor Rory Palmer is one of the candidates and, should he get the most votes from East Midlands Labour members, he will be second on the ballot paper behind sitting Labour MEP Glenis Willmott.

The Euro elections use a proportional representation system so the higher ranked the candidate, the better the chance of them winning a seat in Brussels should voters back Labour in May.

Leicester MPs Keith Vaz, Liz Kendall and Jon Ashworth have all pledged their support to Coun Palmer's campaign, as has his boss, city mayor Sir Peter Soulsby.

The internal Labour ballot opened on Friday and runs until July 31. The result will be announced in September.

Coun Palmer's Labour rivals are Nicki Brooks, Khalid Hadadi and Linda Woodings.

Ms Brooks is a Gedling borough councillor and has been an active member of the Labour Party for more than 20 years.

Mr Hadadi is a Brussels-based European affairs manager for Channel 4. He was formerly an employment guidance worker for Leicester City Council and carried out voluntary work focussing on urban regeneration in the city.

Ms Woodings is political officer for the East Midlands branch of the Communications Workers Union.

A judge has warned "lessons must be learnt" from the death of a teenager who was not wearing a seatbelt when the car he was in crashed.

Neither front seat passenger Benjamin Fairlie, who died, nor the seriously injured driver, Louis Fleetwood, were wearing their belts.

Fleetwood lost control of his Renault Clio on a bend in Countesthorpe Road, near Blaby, and crashed into a tree.

Judge Simon Hammond spoke out as Fleetwood changed his plea yesterday – on the day of trial – to admit causing Ben's death by careless driving on September 10, 2011.

The judge said: "It's a terrible tragedy. If it's any consolation to the family of Ben Fairlie, the message has to go out to young people, and everyone else, that you don't set off in a car without wearing a seatbelt."

Fleetwood (21), of Lacey Close, Lutterworth, was driving from South Wigston to Countesthorpe when he failed to negotiate a right-hand bend in rain.

His vehicle clipped the kerb on the passenger-side causing it to mount the pavement, travel over a grass verge and plummet into a ditch and a tree, at 8.30pm.

Ben, a 16-year-old apprentice shop-fitter, of Rosebank Road, Countesthorpe, died in hospital. He and close friend Fleetwood were thrown from the car because they were not wearing their seatbelts, said Mary Prior, prosecuting.

Judge Hammond said: "The lesson from this tragedy is everyone should belt-up."

The judge said it was arguable that Ben might "not have been killed or sustained serious injury" had he been wearing a seatbelt.

"It's the obligation of everyone to wear a seatbelt and the obligation of the driver to make sure everyone is doing so."

Judge Hammond said the incident was "a ghastly tragedy for both families".

On a personal note, the judge told Ben's family, in the public gallery at Leicester Crown Court: "I have three children and my youngest daughter is the same age as Ben was. Don't think, when she goes out, that I don't worry something like that might happen."

Before Fleetwood entered his guilty plea, defence counsel Philip Gibbs asked the judge for an early indication of the likely sentence.

He said: "It's a case of someone driving perfectly normally moments before making a mistake on a less than perfect bend in bad conditions."

The court heard Fleetwood's Renault Clio did not have a current MoT certificate, but that did not contribute to the crash as the car was road-worthy.

Mr Gibbs said: "Defects had been put right, but it hadn't been put forward for an MoT."

The court heard that stretch of road has since been resurfaced.

Mrs Prior said: "The defendant has no recollection as to how this incident occurred."

Judge Hammond said, given all the circumstances, he was prepared to pass a suspended jail sentence at the next hearing, on June 28. Fleetwood was released on bail

He said: "These cases are desperately sad and the most difficult for judges to deal with. No sentence can ever reflect the loss of a life."

Ben was born in Whetstone and lived in Countesthorpe for six years with his parents, Debbie and Stuart, and younger sister, Ellie.

He had studied at Countesthorpe College, where he helped design a skate park for teenagers in the village.

Fears have been raised that a proposed housing estate will encroach on Bradgate Park.

Developers D Smallman and A Smith have lodged plans for 34 homes on a three-acre site off Bradgate Road, Anstey, with Charnwood Borough Council.

However, people who live nearby are objecting to the scheme and a group, Contact Bradgate, has been formed to oppose it.

Harvey Nightingale, of Bradgate Road, is one of the objectors.

He said: "These houses would be outside the boundary of the village and would push housing further into the open land between it and Bradgate Park.

"It will alter the rural character of the peaceful and popular footpath between Anstey and Bradgate Park and will be visible from parts of it."

The developers intend to demolish a house in Bradgate Road to form an access to the estate.

Mr Nightingale said: "The demolition of the house and the building of the road will change the attractive entrance to the village, also threatening the well-established mature oak trees along this stretch."

There are also concerns the homes will bring more traffic.

Villagers estimated the homes would mean at least 60 cars, which would have a knock-on effect on congestion in the centre of the village.

The protesters have placed a petition in the village post office.

County councillor for the area David Snartt said the homes would be visible from Bradgate Park but he was not convinced that would be a reason for the planning committee to reject the proposal.

He said: "I do think the traffic is an important issue and it is not a sustainable location.

"There are some grounds to fight this on and I understand why residents are concerned about it."

Ancer Spa, agent for the developers, said the scheme would help the council achieve its Government-set target of having a five-year supply of land for housing development, which it does not currently have.

A spokesman said: "The site has a previously developed residential character and now represents a significant under-use of a potentially very attractive area of land capable of accommodating much-needed housing."

He said it would benefit families looking to move Anstey.

A former soldier who was on duty during the Queen's coronation was today attending the Westminster Abbey service to mark the 60th anniversary of the event.

John Cowley, from Coalville, had just finished training with the Grenadier Guards in June 1953.

Because he had not been assigned to a battalion, he was unable to join his comrades in their scarlet dress uniforms on parade in places such as The Mall.

He was on duty in Victoria, in the khaki day-to-day guardsman's uniform.

But today, 78-year-old Mr Cowley was to be inside Westminster Abbey, among the thousands of invited guests.

He said: "I'm really looking forward to it.

"I was in the abbey four years ago when the Queen was there for a service commemorating the passing of the country's last three First World War veterans.

"It's a lovely place and it was my first time inside, although I've been on duty outside on guards of honour many times.

"I was 18 when I signed up. I had always wanted to be in the Grenadier Guards and I was standing on duty, somewhere in Victoria, I think.

"I had only been to London once before, on a school trip, so it was all a bit of an experience."

Mr Cowley, who is chairman of the Leicestershire and Rutland branch of the Grenadier Guards Association, went on to stand guard at Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London and Windsor Castle.

He took part in Trooping the Colour twice. He also served in Suez and Cyprus.

Mr Cowley said: "The invitation to Westminster Abbey for the anniversary of the coronation came up in conversation when the Queen came to Leicester last year and we formed a guard of honour at The Magazine."

Accompanying him will be Ronald Fletcher, secretary and treasurer of the Leicestershire branch.

Among the other guests will be Manjula Sood, chairwoman of Leicester Council of Faiths.

She said: "I feel very honoured to be invited and to be representing the city."

Lord Lieutenant of Leicestershire, Jennifer, Lady Gretton, will also be at the service.

Others there include: Susan McEniff and James Munton, of Leicester Charity Link; Ranjit Kaur Aulakh, of Leicester Council of Faiths; Canon Barry Naylor; Neil Townsend, of the Korean Veterans Association; and cadets Jessica Barnes and Georgia Pathy, from Welbeck Defence College, Woodhouse.

Kasabian will team up with former Leicester City footballers and rugby legend Martin Johnson in a kick-about to support a charity in memory of a teenager who died while out jogging.

The all-star match will see a Kasabian XI led by bassist Chris Edwards take on a Foxes legends side featuring former City hero Muzzy Izzet.

Joe Humphries, 14, collapsed a few minutes from his home in Rothley in October, a victim of sudden arrhythmic death syndrome (Sads) – the adult version of cot death.

His family has since created the Joe Humphries Memorial Trust to promote awareness of the condition.

Chris, who urged Kasabian fans to help spread the word with an appeal on the band's website in April, said: "Losing someone with so much potential as Joe at such a young age has been heart-breaking for his family and friends.

"But the work they have done in such a short time since his death has been inspirational. Sads is something everyone should know about and the more people trained to act when someone's heart stops beating, the more lives can be saved.

"Most people know me and the rest of the band are big football fans and this all-star match against the Foxes Legends is something we are really happy to be involved with.

"We're hoping for a big crowd and the Kasabian All-Stars will be going all out for a win."

Martin Johnson, who is patron of Joe's trust and pretty nifty by all accounts with a round ball, will line up with the Foxes Legends.

Organisers said supporters can also expect another glimpse of the silky skills of Kasabian guitarist Sergio Pizzorno, who turned heads with his sublime goal in last year's televised celebrity Soccer Aid game at Old Trafford.

Since Joe's death, family and friends have campaigned for a better understanding of Sads and compulsory CPRresuscitation training in schools.

They also want to see defibrillators made available in all schools, community venues and sports clubs.

Joe's dad Steve – a former Leicester City goalkeeper – said the match would be a fitting tribute to his son, the prefect curtain-raiser for City's new Championship campaign and a must for all Kasabian and Foxes fans. He said: "We've been touched by the way people have been getting behind Joe's trust to hep us raise awareness and reduce the incidence of Sads happening to other families.

"Joe loved music and sport, so this is another fitting occasion to pay tribute to our amazing son, brother and friend."

Admission to the game, which will kick off at 2pm, is by donation, with a minimum £3 suggested for adults and under-fives free.

All proceeds will go to the Joe Humphries Memorial Trust CPR training and defibrillator campaign.

For details on the match, visit:

www.jhmt.org.uk

HERE ARE Martin Crowson's five things from the weekend's opening fixture in the British & Irish Lions tour.

1 Warren Gatland will have learnt little about the Lions in Hong Kong for a trip that was largely a waste of time. Not only was the exercise held to partly satisfy sponsors, it was also held in stifling heat and humidity against a Barbarians side that was vastly inferior and completely over-run. A game against someone like the always competitive Argentinians on home soil would have served them much better.

2 The opening game of the Lions tour spilled a series of strange emotions for the regular Tigers-supporting Englishman. There were Grand Slam winning Welshmen to cheer on and one particular moment when Martin Castrogiovanni (playing for the Barbarians) was involved in a scuffle with Welshman Adam Jones (playing for the Lions). I would be surprised if most Leicester fans didn't have to at least think for a second or two, who to support. There was humour too. Two Saracens players – Schalk Brits and Owen Farrell – had a fight between themselves and one was banned for the opening three matches of next season for his troubles.

3 It will be fascinating to see if there is chemistry between Manu Tuilagi and Brian O'Driscoll in tomorrow's Lions versus Western Force clash. The power and destructive capabilities of Tuilagi mixed with the experience and sublime running lines of the skipper make for a mouth-watering combination. Jamie Roberts is favourite to partner O'Driscoll in the Tests. Tuilagi can change that view tomorrow.

4 Like the next bloke, I love a bit of throw-about rugby banter. But I have to admit to being surprised that former Wallaby captain John Eales came out in the press saying that calling an Aussie a "convict" was considered "reasonably inoffensive". Really?

5 The Lions are favourites to win the series Down Under and their task seems to be looking easier with every passing week. As well as the likes of Quade Cooper and Kurtley Beale having already been ruled out , lock Sitaleki Timani broke a thumb last week and needs surgery and back-rower Scott Higginbotham has had scans on an injured shoulder.

Council bosses have revealed the streets in the county and city where drivers have racked up the most parking fines.

Officials said Oadby's main shopping street, The Parade, was the road in Leicestershire where most drivers fell foul of the parking rules in 2012-13.

In Leicester, Church Gate had the most offenders.

Latest figures show wardens handed out 897 fixed penalty charges in The Parade between the end of March last year and the start of April this year, raising £30,718 – or £590 a week – in fines.

In Church Gate, 1,043 tickets were handed out, generating £35,345.

County councillor for Oadby Jeff Kaufman said he felt motorists' "laziness" was the reason wardens found The Parade such a lucrative street.

He said: "It must be laziness because there is an abundance of free parking around the area, within a couple of minutes' walk.

"That free parking is for up to three hours and is provided by Oadby and Wigston Borough Council.

"There are hundreds of free spaces in those car parks, yet people still choose to park illegally on the street because they just want to nip into the bank or something.

"They're taking a risk and they're getting caught."

There are car parks with 266 free parking spaces within a very short distance of The Parade. There are also on-street bays where 40 minutes of free parking is available

Hussain Hassanali, of Quality DIY and Hardware, in The Parade, said: "I'm not surprised so many tickets are issued. I see it all the time.

"People park in the bays and sometimes stay too long or they go on the yellow lines.

"They want convenience and to be able to stop right outside the shops, even though they shouldn't.

"There are a lot of spaces in the car parks but they do fill up when it's busy, so maybe they feel they have to park on the street."

Driver Dean Jarvis, 33, from Oadby said: "The traffic wardens are right meanies. They don't give people a chance at all, even if they've overstayed by just five minutes.

"There's no charity in their souls – rules are rules and that's all that matters.

"They're in the right I suppose, but they're not making any mates."

Church Gate, in the city centre, has a mixture of disabled parking and pay-and-display, and motorists are restricted to a maximum two hour stay between 7.30am and 6pm, Monday to Saturday.

Billy Musson, who works for Pete's Pet Stores, said: "We see people getting tickets all the time. I think some may be confused by the machine, as a few come in and ask us for instructions as if we're responsible.

"Some others, of course, just don't bother to pay."

Some streets saw fewer fines but a larger penalty income because offences such as parking on a double yellow line carries a £70 charge, while outstaying time limits costs £50.

Also, some penalties were reduced because drivers paid their fines within 14 days.

County Hall said that after The Parade, The Borough in Hinckley saw most tickets issued – 825 – raising £34,500.

In High Street, Market Harborough, 750 tickets were handed out, making £22,500, followed by 630 tickets in Market Street, Ashby, generating £21,400, and Biggin Street, in Loughborough, where 554 tickets were handed out, totalling £22,600.

In all, across the county, 37,546 parking charges were issued generating just over £1 million.

In the city in 2012-13, £998,252 was generated by 35,264 tickets.

The city streets with the most offences, after Church Gate, were: London Road, 737 tickets, (£21,995); Welford Road, 716 tickets, (£22,020); Belgrave Gate, 606 tickets, (£14,635) and Wellington Street, 596 tickets, (£13,668).

A cafe has been shut after environmental health officers found a live mouse in a flour container.

Staff from Leicester City Council's food safety team immediately closed St Stephens Cafe, in Highfields, Leicester, during their visit on Thursday.

Environmental health officer Alison Cadmore told Leicester magistrates yesterday she and a colleague visited the premises, in St Stephens Road, on a routine inspection.

She said: "I noticed a storage container with the lid partly off. The container was used for the storage of flour.

"I lifted the lid and saw a mouse running around.

"I noticed mouse droppings on the worktop behind the microwave, near the till and inside the hot cupboard where open samosas were on display to customers."

Ms Cadmore said when she revisited the cafe yesterday, pest control workers told her they had seen five live mice and found a dead one in a vacuum cleaner.

She outlined the inspections in an application to the court for a prohibition order to keep the cafe closed until the mouse infestation had been eradicated.

"Mice carry a range of diseases that can be passed to humans," said Ms Cadmore.

"There was a significant risk of food being contaminated with harmful bacteria."

Nicki Agalamanyi, prosecuting on behalf of the city council, said the business presented an imminent risk to public health.

She said: "Quite apart from the extensive mouse problem on May 30, the kitchens were in a filthy state.

"There were three waste bins which were full to capacity and one in the kitchen was overflowing on to the floor."

Abdullahi Abdi, the food business operator at the cafe, told the court he did not agree the cafe posed a risk to public health.

He said: "The cafe is clean now.

"After the first visit, we worked day and night for three days to clean it.

"It is not easy to keep the cafe clean during the day when customers are dropping food on to the floor as they eat."

District judge Tim Daber said although improvements had been made, he was in no doubt the cafe still posed a substantial risk to public health and granted the prohibition order.

It means the cafe must stay shut until inspectors are sure it no longer poses a risk to public health.

The judge ordered Mr Abdi to pay costs of £671.50.

After the hearing, Ms Cadmore said she would visit the cafe tomorrow for another inspection.

Also after the hearing, Mr Abdi said: "All I am trying to do is run a business."

Academics have submitted their response to a High Court challenge over where Richard III will be laid to rest.

The remains of the Plantagenet king are due to be buried in Leicester Cathedral – the nearest church to the spot where they were found by University of Leicester archeologists last year.

However, The Plantagenet Alliance wants a judicial review of that decision.

It argues the exhumation licence issued by the Ministry of Justice, which gives the university authority to bury the king at Leicester Cathedral, should be revoked.

The group's members claim to be descendants of Richard III, the last king of the House of York, and would prefer his remains to be interred in that city.

Alliance members claim their human rights have been breached because of a lack of consultation on the decision.

The university has previously described the claim as "tosh".

It confirmed it has sent papers to the High Court.

A spokesman said: "We can confirm we have responded but we do not wish to say anything further at this time."

The Plantagenet Alliance's lawyer, Matthew Howarth, said: "I have seen a copy of what they sent. It came to me at the back end of last week. At the moment, it is too early to say anything about it."

Now all the documents have been sent to the High Court, a judge will consider them and decide whether to hear the case or dismiss it.

Mr Howarth said: "No judge has been chosen to look at it yet but when one is found, a decision will be made on an assessment on the paperwork.

"We think we have a very good case, but if the judge rejects it we have the right to get an oral hearing to persuade him it should still go ahead.

"That is not an unusual thing to happen."

It is understood the university is hoping no judge will be swayed to hear the Plantagenet Alliance's case.

Mr Howarth said he thought it would be about mid-July when the parties would have the decision.

That way, a potentially long and costly legal struggle would be avoided and the current interment plans would be unaffected.

York Minster has already stated it is happy for the king to be buried in Leicester Cathedral.

Both the cathedral and the minster have been named as interested parties in the case but church officials in Leicester said they were hoping to stay out of the matter, which they described as a distraction.

Following the announcement this year of the legal challenge, Richard Taylor, deputy registrar at the University of Leicester, tweeted: "I've been measured in my comments on the reinterment of Richard III, but the argument a Leicester reinterment breaches human rights is tosh."

City mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said at the time: "They stand no chance whatsoever.

"It's one of the most absurd claims I've heard of from an organisation I've never heard of."

Tom Croft pulls on a British & Irish Lions shirt today citing former Leicester Tigers prop Matt Hampson as a huge inspiration.

The 27-year-old Croft starts at blindside flanker against Western Force on his second Lions tour after making his debut in South Africa in 2009.

But it is a tour he never expected to be on following a horrific injury at Harlequins 13 months ago, when he left the Stoop on a stretcher and requiring lengthy and delicate surgery to the top of his spine.

There were plenty of dark days on his comeback, but it was Hampson's attitude at battling back from a career-ending injury of his own that inspired Croft to keep fighting hard.

Croft broke his neck in three places and burst a disc when he mistimed a routine tackle on Quins' Nick Easter.

He was operated on the following day by leading spinal surgeon Peter Hamlyn, who had to go in through the back of Croft's neck to compress the nerves and through the front to reconstruct the vertebrae.

In a complex procedure, Croft had the "crazy paving" removed, a bone graft taken from his hip and a metal plate, cage and screws inserted into his neck.

Hamlyn later told Croft he had beaten the odds – he had come as close as was possible to being paralysed by an injury which could have killed him.

His recovery has been nothing short of remarkable.

"When I got injured, I was just hoping to get back and playing, and I was very fortunate to be involved at the end of the Six Nations," said Croft.

"My train of thought was getting on to the England tour of Argentina. That would have been a massive bonus and a highlight for me, so being included in the Lions squad has far surpassed that.

"Hambo has helped. He is one of the most upbeat characters there is, especially with what has happened to him.

"It would very easy for him to become a recluse but he is out there doing things for the foundation, and it gave me that little bit of hope that, if anything did happen, it was not the be all and end all.

"You play a contact sport so there is potential for things to happen, a very small percentage. But Hambo has come through it and achieved massive things. It gives you that hope."

Croft starred for the 2009 Lions in South Africa, scoring two tries in the first Test as the tourists mounted a comeback against South Africa and then produced a performance of even greater stature a week later in Pretoria.

It was a career-defining tour and Australia offers him the chance to take his game to even greater heights.

Croft put on five kilograms during his time out injured and he has returned stronger but, as Harlequins discovered in the Aviva Premiership semi-final, he has lost none of his electric pace.

"Playing for the Lions has been the highlight of my career so far," said Croft.

"I was very happy with the way that tour went but it's not just about trying to recreate that, for me it's about moving on from that.

"I think it is impossible to recreate that Lions form exactly. So I have to bring the best of that into my game, as well as everything else I am doing."

Western Force: Christie; Haylett-Petty, Stubbs, Tuatara-Morrison, C Brown; Norton-Knight, Sheehan; Manu, Hilterbrand, Ma'afu, Lynn, Battye, Cottrell, Hodgson (capt), R Brown. Reps: Roach, Kolo, Metcher, Matwijow, McCaffrey, Mathewson, Haining, Rasolea.

Lions: Halfpenny; Bowe, O'Driscoll, Tuilagi, North; Sexton, Murray; Healy, Best, Cole, A-W Jones, Evans, Croft, O'Brien, Heaslip. Reps: T Youngs, Vunipola, Stevens, Parling, Faletau, B Youngs, Farrell, Maitland.

Only 18 primary schools in the city and county are known to be meeting the Government's swimming targets, according to a survey.

The research, by the Amateur Swimming Association (ASA), based at Loughborough University, suggests only a small number of schools are ensuring that pupils can swim 25 metres unaided by the time they are 11-years-old.

The Government expects all pupils to meet this benchmark as part of the national curriculum before they leave primary school.

About 3,500 schools were surveyed across England. However, only 44 primary schools in Leicester and Leicestershire responded with 18 (41 per cent) saying they met the Government's target.

A spokeswoman for ASA, which looks after swimming throughout England, said: "It must be taken into account that a smaller number of schools responded to the survey in this region. However, the national picture is robust because of the overall amount of respondents."

The survey found that schools are not achieving anywhere near the recommended level of delivery time.

David Sparkes, chief executive of ASA, has urged the Government to show its commitment to swimming by asking Ofsted to monitor schools' delivery of swimming lessons through the inspection process.

Overall the survey showed that 49 per cent of state school pupils could swim 25 metres unaided by the age of 11.

The report said 1.1 million school children could not swim.

The average state school pupil spent just eight hours and 15 minutes a year in swimming lessons at school – well under the 22 hours recommended by the Department for Education.

It said that drowning was among the leading causes of accidental death of children and young people in England.

In September, each primary school will receive a minimum of £9,000 additional ring-fenced funding as part of the Government's £150 million injection into PE and school sport.

ASA is calling for curriculum swimming and water safety to be a priority.

Mr Sparkes said: "School swimming is the single most effective way of teaching children how to be safe in and around water."

Brookside Primary, in Oadby, has its own pool.

Headteacher Lynn Bruce, said: "Swimming is a key skill and should certainly remain part of the curriculum, given that it's also a life-saving skill. Children need to have the confidence to swim and there are obvious health benefits which come with it. We're very lucky to have our own pool and therefore do not need to take into account transport costs or time out of the classroom."