Distractions are Dangerous

Remain ever vigilant and always watching.

Supervision is the single most important thing you can do to keep your children safe around water.

Any distraction is dangerous and puts young children at risk around water. Whether it is a phone or social media use, or carrying out everyday tasks, such as leaving a child unsupervised momentarily to cook, take the rubbish out or collect the washing, no task is worth your child’s life

KEEP WATCH

Kids can’t help themselves around water, you need to.

Drowning deaths in young children are preventable. For more than 25 years, Keep Watch has been advising Australian parents and carers on how to keep their children safe when in, on or around the water.

Drowning is one of the leading causes of death in children 0-4 years of age. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that drowning is the number one cause of death in one-, two- and three-year-old children (ABS 2019).

Between 1 July 2002/03 and 30 June 2019/20, 507 children aged 0 to 4 years drowned in Australia. Of these, 207 (41%) children aged one year drowned.

Most deaths in children aged one occurred in backyard swimming pools (53%) and during the summer months (39%).

Accidental falls into water was the leading activity prior to drowning in this age group, accounting for 78% of all deaths.

Almost all of these deaths were due to a lack of active adult supervision.

For every toddler drowning death approximately eight children are admitted to hospital as a result of non-fatal drowning.

Royal Life Saving in conjunction with the NSW Government is asking all parents to Supervise, Restrict, Teach and Respond to keep their children safe around water. Because ‘Kids can’t help themselves around water, you need to.’

When implemented together, these Keep Watch drowning prevention actions help to maximise child safety around water.

Eyes on the prize

Prepare for the unexpected. Always Keep Watch.

Kids will be kids. And we love them all. Cute, funny, quiet, wild, angelic, studious, all of them with their own unique personalities, all of them curious and unpredictable. One day avid explorers and princesses the next, with everything in between. Which is why we love them even more!

But they have one thing in common: Kids can’t help themselves around water, you need to.

Keep Watch to keep your child safe around water.

Keep Watch Actions; Supervise, Restrict, Teach, Respond: https://www.royallifesaving.com.au/about/campaigns-and-programs/keep-watch/keep-watch-actions

Keep Watch NSW Video Playlist – https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbxkeHNlWQmwMdy7EIYxQrcTk45FWiw_3

For more information please visit - https://www.royallifesaving.com.au/programs/keep-watch-toddler-drowning-prevention-program 

There are a number of organisations that provide resources to help you to keep your pool safe;

Royal Life Saving

•   Keep Watch
•      https://www.royallifesaving.com.au/programs/keep-watch-toddler-drowning-prevention-program

·         Pool Owner Supervision and Home Pool Safety 
·        https://www.royallifesaving.com.au/about/campaigns-and-programs/keep-watch
·         Home Pool Safety Checklist

 https://www.royallifesaving.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/40412/KW_A4Checklist2020.pdf

• Water Safety at Home: https://www.royallifesaving.com.au/stay-safe-active/locations/water-safety-at-home
• Swim and Survive
• http://www.swimandsurvive.com.au/ 

 The Sydney Children's Hospitals Network

Drowning Prevention

·         https://kidshealth.schn.health.nsw.gov.au/drowning-prevention

Pool Fencing Videos

·         https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLzKYSvGtchuI4sko7gx9wtVQ5G3QyMmqI

ANZCOR Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Guideline 8

·         CPR https://resus.org.au/guidelines

Water Quality Information

·         https://www.spasa.com.au/consumer-info/the-tip-top-pool/

·         https://www.choice.com.au/outdoor/pools/cleaning-and-maintenance/articles/pool-maintenance-guide 

·         Australian Standard 3633-1989 : Private swimming pools water quality (withdrawn)