A unified and concerted campaign to teach our kids to swim should be a priority for everyone.
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As summer school holidays draw to a close and the nation re-starts the daily grind, the issue – important for safety of the young – could slip down the priority list for action.
Drowning deaths are tragic. A key point is that many are preventable and everything possible should be done to avoid them. We need to reduce the deaths.
Some alarming facts emerged in the debate on who is responsible for teaching children to swim when the drowning toll (including adults) reached 18 earlier this month.
The Royal Life Saving Society Australia (RLSSA) says one in five students leave primary school without the ability to swim 50 metres.
Dubbo swimming instructor Rae Andrews said some parents were not getting swimming lessons for their children because of the price.
That is shocking. Surely safety of your children is paramount even if household finances are stressed.
Ultimately it is the responsibility of parents to make sure their children are taught to swim, whatever the cost or challenges.
There have been calls for the introduction of mandatory swimming classes in primary schools.
THE RLSSA believes federal and state governments, the Department of Education, parents, local councils, “everyone” has a role to play in water safety education.
YMCA NSW has called for government rebates on learn-to-swim classes, backed up by compulsory lessons in primary school.
Ms Andrews believes government funding, early intervention and ongoing lessons would help reduce drownings.
The NSW Education Department runs a huge learn-to-swim program with 100,000 public schools students participating annually.
Aquatics and water safety education are also part of a mandatory health and physical education curriculum.
So some safety and teaching measures are in place, but they don’t include all. There should be a system that does.
As has been suggested, the issue needs commitment and action from a wide range of organisations and individuals.
From government coffers to parents’ wallets, the cost should be not be a factor.
We can’t put a price on a child’s life.