Latest Royal Life Saving NSW Industry Report shows assessment decline with a call for additional sector focus

Aiming to better understand the NSW aquatic industry as a collective by analysing and evaluating the risks to patron safety and highlighting areas that need improvement and development, the latest Royal Life Saving Society - NSW State of the Industry Report has identified a decline in assessments.

The report, covering the period 1st July 2020 to 30th June 2021, showcases current safety and compliance outcomes for aquatic facilities in NSW.

Some notable areas highlighted in the report:

• During 2020/21 there were 99 fatal drownings in NSW, of which, 84% were male. This was a 13% increase from the previous year, and a 5% increase over the 10 year average.

• During 2020/21 the Guideline for Safe Pool Operations (GSPO) online portal underwent a major upgrade, with the aim to make the guidelines more user-friendly and to ensure it is easy to find critical information within the guidelines.

• The new Australian Water Safety Strategy (AWSS) 2030 was launched and plays an essential role in National, State and Territory, and community approaches to preventing drowning and promoting safe use of the nation’s waterways and swimming pools. The AWSS 2030 presents a framework that:

• Identifies the key drowning prevention priorities, areas of focus and approaches 

• Establishes a roadmap for action that may be monitored, supported, and celebrated 

• Inspires stakeholders; Governments, organisations, and communities to act.

• In 2020/21, Royal Life Saving’s Aquatic Facility Safety Assessment (AFSA) rated the safety of 90 public swimming pools against a range of industry, state and national standards, guidelines, and legislative provisions.

• The extensive lockdowns and Public Health Orders over the past 12 months had a significant impact on the delivery of AFSA’s across NSW, with assessment numbers dropping 40% since the start of the pandemic.

• The overall mean compliance across New South Wales has remained consistent over the past 4 years, with mean compliance of 83%, highlighting the need for additional focus from aquatic facilities for improvement. 

• Highest performing sections in 2020/21: Supervision - pool (90.95%), lap and lane pools (89.79%) and first aid (89.29%). 

• Lowest performing sections 2020/21: Technical operations gases (63.69%), dive pools (69.98%) and keep watch at public pools (78.47%) - (ref page 13). 

• Illawarra Region (92%) reported the highest level of compliance whilst the Northern Region (70%) reported the lowest level of compliance. Individual venues’ Compliance Scores ranged from as low as 29% to as high as 98% across New South Wales (ref page14). 

• Facilities assessed annually outperformed those assessed less frequently by 23% for an overall safety score.

• One area of the Health and Safety Systems that was highlighted in 2020/21 as scoring poorly across most sites was staff training. Key Recommendations: It is recommended that facilities ensure staff or occupiers of the facility participate in a centre evacuation exercise annually. Personnel who provide emergency assistance should be trained in the relevant parts of the emergency management plan.

• When assessing First Aid in aquatic facilities, It is recommended that reporting procedures for incidents and injuries be incorporated in the facility’s policies and procedures manual and that all staff are trained in incident and injury reporting procedures.

• Technical Operations is a section within the AFSA that focuses on aspects of pool operation related to the maintenance of pool water quality. This area is dedicated to assessing pool plant and associated equipment as well as chemical storage and handling. While this area is one of the most heavily regulated, it consistently scores low in rates of compliance.

• Dive pools represent one of the greatest risks in aquatic facilities, due to deeper water depths and elevated entry heights. According to the results of the ASFA’s conducted, 50% of the facilities assessed did not have adequate risk assessments in place for the dive facilities.

• It is recommended that a risk assessment be conducted to determine minimum criteria for supervision at the facility to manage patron safety. The risk assessment should consider; users of the facility and their swimming ability, type of activities undertaken, design of the pool, deployment, duties, or procedures of Lifeguards to facilitate appropriate and sufficient supervision.

• It is recommended that Keep Watch at Public Pools program is part of regular in-service training for Lifeguards. A record of content and participation at in-service training should be maintained. 

Click here to view the full report.

For further information go to the Aquatic Safety Services website at drowningprevention.org.au