Drowning Prevention Week – one of the UK’s largest summer water safety campaigns – took place recently, with lifesaving initiatives rolled out across the Isle of Wight.
The national campaign, led by the Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS), highlighted the importance of water safety education. Globally, drowning remains a leading cause of accidental death, with around 300,000 lives lost each year. Of those, approximately 75,000 were children under the age of 5.
Todd Miller has launched a range of local programmes with the Beach Lifeguard services in Ryde and Sandown, as well as at Waterside Pool in Ryde, to help raise awareness and prevent further tragedies.
With support from Southern Water, Ryde Beach Lifeguards delivered free ‘Sea Safe’ sessions to hundreds of children at schools across the Isle of Wight. The schools included Bembridge, Brading, Broadlea, Godshill, Greenmount, Oakfield, St Blasius, St Francis and home-educated children.
These sessions taught children how to stay SAFE in and around water, how to prevent cold water shock, and how to call for help if needed. The SAFE acronym stood for:
- S – Spot the Dangers
- A – Advice from Lifeguards
- F – Friends: never swim alone
- E – Emergency: how to respond and who to call
Waterside Pool in Ryde also played a key role by incorporating lifesaving skills into all group swimming lessons, catering to all ages and abilities. Free crayons and water safety activity sheets – funded by the RLSS Lifesaving Branch – were given to swimmers as part of the campaign.
Todd Miller, RLSS IW Lifesaving Lead, has said:
“We were proud to continue the delivery of local drowning prevention initiatives through the Beach Lifeguards and local leisure centres, at Waterside Pool and West Wight Sports Centre. Education is the best preventive action we can take to minimise the risk of any local drowning, especially over the summer months.
Article continues below this advertisement “I encouraged all parents to use the free RLSS resources to educate their children and themselves on how to stay safe at the beach this summer, and thank you to everyone who supported the continued delivery of our local drowning prevention programmes.”
Free resources are available for parents and families to use at home via the RLSS website: www.rlss.org.uk/listing/category/drowning-prevention-week-resources-for-families.
