Important Water Safety message to Schools from the RNLI - James Woodhouse, RNLI Water Safety Education Manager South East.

This summer, our Lifeguards cannot be everywhere, meaning a heightened water safety risk to beach goers. We are asking you to help us share some important messages to children and their families. Although you may be a fair distance from the beach, we are seeing an increase in distances people are travelling to visit the coast, therefore it is important that we share the messaging inland as well as coastally.

We have already seen the influx of beach goers in the past few weeks after some of the restrictions were lifted and the summer weather arrived. In a normal year, the RNLI helps thousands of people who end up getting into difficulty in or close to the water when doing these types of activities.

Throughout the summer term, our local team of trained volunteers and Lifeguards do their best to visit as many of the schools, colleges and youth groups in our region as possible. However, due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak we have not been able to engage with school communities as we normally would in your region.

We have taken the time over the last couple of months to carefully condense and design our resources which are aimed at primary and secondary school children, whilst also ensuring they are appropriate to be taught from home or through online classrooms. This can be by a parent, guardian or teacher.

Below, you will find out ways in which you can help at this time.

• Download and use our Water Safety from Home Resources. Educating young people about how to keep safe, in, on and around water is fundamental to saving lives at sea and a core part of the RNLI’s water safety activity. This term we have put together two downloadable packs of resources focusing on keeping safe this summer.
  
  
• Please help by sharing the RNLI & MCA’s Beach Safety Campaign with parents, guardians and your wider network. Beach lifeguards cannot be everywhere this summer – it is vital every one of us takes responsibility for our own, and our families’, safety.
  
  
• Our beach safety resources are also available for download to use on social media and online.