The Ace Award recognizes swimmers who have mastered essential water skills such as blowing bubbles, floating, and kicking. This award celebrates their progress in gaining the confidence and independence needed to prepare for SwimSafer Stage 1, marking a key milestone in their swimming journey.

Develop greater independence in the water, learn general and deep-end water safety. Techniques taught include the forward and backward swimming movements, safe entry and exit and personal water safety.​

Skills development including unassisted step entry into the water, sculling, feet first surface dives, personal water safety skills as well as water safety in aquatic environments. One of the goals is to achieve 25 metres of independent continuous swimming.

Entry skills such as the stride jump will be taught. Skills include sculling, underwater skills and putting on a personal flotation device (PFD) whilst in water and swimming with it. One of the goals is to achieve 50 metres of continuous swimming.

Development of student’s stroke techniques is a focus here, along with coordinated breathing in deep water. This stage sees the introduction of throw rescues and more personal survival skills. One of the goals is to achieve 100 metres of a variety of strokes.

Fundamentals of diving will be introduced. Development of personal survival knowledge will continue with a situational context of swimming quickly away from a sinking boat. Students will be required to demonstrate efficient stroke techniques by swimming a variety of strokes over 200 metres within a given time frame.

Students will be required to perform a variety of strokes with efficiency over 400 metres within a given time frame for each stroke. Personal survival skills like making use of clothing to make a personal flotation device and swimming with them, putting on a life jacket in water and demonstrating the Heat Escape Lessening Posture technique will be taught.