Parents have witnessed 101 children save themselves
Since the Shapland Swim School at Sinnamon Park opened in January 2000 Pamela has kept an accurate record of the reported aquatic accidents children have had. They include situations where they fell into a body of water and the children used the skills they learned at the swim school to not panic, and automatically turn around and grab the side of the pool/river bank/rock wall and hold on till help came. Each child is given a Hero Certificate to record the event.
In some cases the falls were into lakes and rivers and they were not seen for much longer than it takes for a child to drown in silence, and in some instances the child fell in pools and spas, and returned to the parent dripping wet. In these cases the child avoided drowning and in fact did not even get a bad fright as they knew what to do. In other cases the parents were nearby and alert but the child ‘rescued’ themselves before the parent could react.
These facts re-enforce in our minds how important it is for a child to develop their Personal Aquatic Survival Skills under the instruction of qualified and dedicated swimming teachers in an environment specifically designed for teaching these vital Aquatic Skills.
It also reminds us that drowning is a silent killer and that all parents need to be aware that when around a water environment it is vital that parents/guardians need to make sure they are very close to their children and have constant eye contact with them. Being able to swim back to the side of the pool or riverbank or rock wall is an essential bonus.
Congratulations to all at the Sinnamon Park swim school for a contribution to our society that very few businesses make. We are in the business of saving lives and parents who make the effort to have their children taught to swim can be certain that this effort will result in their children being “Safer in the water for the rest of their lives” and in 101 documented case; are still alive today and not a national drowning statistic.
Chris Shapland