Youngsters make a splash learning new life-saving skills

Thousands of young swimmers in South Lanarkshire are this week receiving lessons in self-rescue and life-saving skills on the water.

Lessons under the National Learn to Swim framework, which involves more than 7000 children locally, are being specially adapted to include key water safety guidance as part of the Royal Life Saving Society UK’s Drowning Prevention Week, which runs until Monday.

The special Drowning Prevention Week lesson programme is being incorporated into normal swimming lessons.

Learn to Swim partners Scottish Swimming and Scottish Water have joined with the Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK), the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), leisure trusts and local pools to deliver these exclusive lessons just before the summer holidays.

Up to 75,000 children on the Learn to Swim Framework across Scotland are getting into the pool this week to learn the water safety code: stop and think, stay together, float, call 999 or 112. They will also learn the importance of floating if they ever fall in cold water and the meanings of different flags when at the beach.

The latest figures show that, in 2018, a total of 263 people lost their lives to drowning in the UK, of which 46 were in Scotland.

Valerie Kemp, sport and physical activity manager at South Lanarkshire Leisure, said: “We’re proud to be getting involved in this fantastic initiative.

“It’s great that, as we teach the sport, we’re also covering the valuable skills that will make sure that South Lanarkshire children know how to stay safe in and around the water.”

Every child will receive a water safety leaflet provided by the RNLI to support the lessons and give children the knowledge and advice to continue enjoying a range of water environments safely.

For information about swimming lessons in South Lanarkshire contact your local swimming pool.

Details are on the South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture website www. slleisureandculture.co.uk