Northern Territory children missing out on water safety education

Child drownings in the Northern Territory over the past year have led the Royal Life Saving Society Australia to highlight that many primary schools in the Darwin region do not offer swimming and water safety lessons because they don't have the funding.

Commenting following two child drownings during the holiday period, Royal Life Saving Northern Territory Executive Director, Floss Roberts told the ABC that the organisation does not have the budget to offer free lessons at the schools that run its programs, which means some children miss out.

Roberts stated "if parents can't afford for their children to do swimming and water safety lessons when the school's having it those children stay in the library maybe and the other ones get to go out.

"But we still have in Darwin a lot of schools that don't do swimming and water safety programs in primary school."

Roberts says a hard-hitting campaign is needed to reduce the number of accidental drownings in the Northern Territory, highlighting that 22 children have drowned in the Territory in the last ten years, but a strong pool safety campaign has already seen some improvements.

She added "in 2002 when we had the highest drowning rate across Australia of children under five - having an over-arching campaign like the water safety awareness program really did turn that around for us, and of course the pool fencing legislation."

Roberts wants a similar kind of campaign to address water safety more broadly.

1st September 2012 - ALARMING NEW REPORT ON NORTHERN TERRITORY DROWNINGS

22nd September 2011 - ROYAL LIFE SAVING REVEALS RISE IN DROWNINGS

23rd May 2011 - NT DROWNING HIGHLIGHTS NEED FOR WATCH AROUND WATER