By Julia Ham (Hampton Swim School) Some parents choose to delay the commencement of their child’s swimming education, believing that their backyard pool plays a more important role in aquatic development than structured lessons. BUT WAIT, in 2009 alone in Australia over 50 children between the ages of 0-17 years died by drowning, with many more near-drowning incidents and accidents occurring around the pool or beach. As previously reported, many of these children were left unsupervised, so it's easy to see why swim lessons sooner rather than later provide an additional barrier against drowning. Safety aside, swimming is a great form of exercise and, as well as being fun, it promotes time with the family and opens the door to many water sports such as water polo, sailing and nippers. The most common question asked by prospective parents of children of Hampton Swim School is, “when is the best time to start swimming?” Opinions on this topic vary. Given Qld’s lifestyle, the likelihood that a child will be...

Some parents choose to delay the commencement of their child’s swimming education, believing that their backyard pool plays a more important role in aquatic development than structured lessons.

BUT WAIT, in 2009 alone in Australia over 50 children between the ages of 0-17 years died by drowning, with many more near-drowning incidents and accidents occurring around the pool or beach. As previously reported, many of these children were left unsupervised, so it's easy to see why swim lessons sooner rather than later provide an additional barrier against drowning. Safety aside, swimming is a great form of exercise and, as well as being fun, it promotes time with the family and opens the door to many water sports such as water polo, sailing and nippers....

Home pools are becoming more common every day. It is estimated now that more than 1 in 5 Australian homes have a swimming pool and, with QLD’s perfect weather, the water is the place to be! But beware: this great Aussie Icon can be dangerous! The RLSSA National Drowning Report for 2009 showed an alarming increase to 302 in the number of deaths caused by drowning. This is the highest figure in 6 years, and a wakeup call to parents especially when we consider that 32 deaths were in the under 5 years age group and, of these, over 60% were in backyard swimming pools. Combine this with the recent tragic drowning of 2 children at public pools, and we need to realise that supervision CAN, and DOES FAIL. Recently, Hampton Swim School conducted a Mother’s Morning Tea at which a segment interviewing a parent of a young child who had drowned was aired. There was not a dry eye in the room, and the grief and guilt of the parent was felt by everyone in attendance. Parents need to be reminded not to be complacent about SUPERVISION as the primary layer of protection in the prevention of drowning. Vigilance is required, no matter how confident a young swimmer may be....

Children have so many activities and lessons available to them it is difficult to fit everything in to their busy schedule. How do parents know how when a child is ready to stop attending swimming lessons? One of my swim school parents recently told me of their intention to stop their 6-year old’s swim lessons as they believed that their child was now “water safe”. When pressed as to what exactly they meant by “water safe”, the parent explained that her son had been taking swim lessons for 3 years, and could now swim 25m unassisted and float on their back, and was aware of basic water safety information. Moreover, the little boy had said to his parent that he wanted to start sailing lessons instead. Discontinuation of swim lessons at this early age and for reasons similar to those mentioned above is all too common. However, before interrupting the progress of a child’s swim lessons, there are several issues that I believe a parent should consider. Firstly, there is a popular misconception that attending swim lessons will ensure a child’s safety around water and guarantee them “drown proof”. While swim schools are in the business of providing water skills which are designed to help assist in the prevention of drowning, they cannot prevent drowning from occurring. There is no such thing as being either “water safe” or “drown proof”, and the role of a swim school is to impart knowledge, tools and skills to a swimmer for them use when a dangerous water-related situation arises....