This month
see’s a new joint Life Saving education program being launched in Pembrokeshire
that is estimated to reach hundreds of local children over the next year.
Tenby Surf
Lifesaving club has teamed up with commercial lifeguard training provider,
Water Safety Europe, to deliver a new, structured, age specific pool based
education program that is hoped will not only attract new members to the club
but will also offer new exciting training opportunities for its existing Nipper
and Junior members.
The club has
offered junior education programs since its creation in 1993 offering year
round training with summer activities on the resorts award winning South Beach
The new pool
based program will see over 50 local children a week attend the charities
junior training held in the towns leisure centre and being put through the new
structured training.
The new ‘Nipper
Lifesaver’ scheme, which has been developed by Water Safety Europe, includes 3
core awards that are split into 9 stages, designed to build confidence as well
as practical water fitness, skills and survival techniques.
This fun and
exciting water safety award scheme is aimed at children aged 8-12 years old and
teaches participants to stay safe around water as well as teaching them what to
do in an emergency and who to contact in an emergency.
Alongside
their new nipper program, the club has also launched a new, in house ‘Junior
Lifesaver’ scheme that will target the clubs 12-15 year old members. This new scheme consists of two separate
awards that will be delivered over the 21 weeks period and will focus on
teaching vital water safety skills as well as personal survival, rescue techniques
and fitness.
The club is
now working with Water Safety Europe to extend these programs to incorporate beach
based awards that will be launched in Easter 2016.
Water Safety
Europe’s Angelo Fecci said, “Structured programs like this are essential for
teaching the community vital water safety awareness and lifesaving skills. The new awards will enable the Tenby SLSC
volunteers to deliver in house, structured and relevant sessions. We have been so glad to donate our lifeguard
trainers time and expertise to helping this local charities project.”
The new
project has come about during the same time that calls for improved water
safety education are being voiced across the UK
Statistics
from the National Water Safety Forum show that in 2013 there were 381 water
related deaths within UK
“We are
extremely lucky to have such a club and opportunities within our county as
there are many, some surprising close to home without such facilities and now
calling for such programs.” Said Junior Lifesaving Coach Ashley Griffiths. “The aim of our junior training has always
been to educate young people of the dangers and to prevent them ever getting
into difficulty in the first place. Many
of our junior members will work their way up through the club and will
ultimately go on to train as and work as a professional lifeguard.”
- For further information about the club
and its projects please search ‘Surf Link – Tenby’ on Facebook
- For information on event water safety
services or lifeguard training please visit www.watersafetyeurope.co.uk or
search for them on Facebook or Twitter.
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