Drowning Prevention Week
14th - 21st June 2025
Drowning Prevention Week is here again and it’s time to remind ourselves of the importance of water safety and how we can all play our part in preventing ourselves and our loved ones from getting into difficulty.
In this section:
What is Drowning Prevention Week?
Drowning Prevention Week aims to equip everybody across the UK and Ireland with the skills and knowledge needed to make the right decisions about water safety. This week is ideally timed, focusing on the lead up to summer, where the risk of accidental drowning increases significantly.
Places Leisure Swim Teacher Tara tells us the best way to learn is to make it fun!
“Drowning Prevention Week is an important time to raise People’s awareness about water safety. As swimming teachers we know how vital it is to equip children and their families with how to stay safe around water, delivering this in a fun and engaging way. We aim to make the learning enjoyable and memorable so everyone remembers how to stay safe!”
Why is learning to swim so important?
At Places Leisure, we don’t take water safety lightly. The core purpose of our swimming lessons is to build what we believe is a fundamental life skill for individuals of any age and ability – not only to develop their physical and mental strength but also potentially prepare them for critical water-related accidents that might occur at any stage throughout their life. This is essential not only for themselves but also for those around them.
Why learn to swim with Places Leisure?
We deliver our swimming lessons in conjunction with Swim England through the Learn to Swim Framework. This involves educating students from the most basic, foundational skills needed to build confidence and develop safety awareness in the water at their own pace. Lessons also focus on guiding learners to perfect strokes, movements and dives, eventually leading to fluent swimming ability and stamina.
How are we supporting Drowning Prevention Week?
All of our teachers bring safety to the forefront of their lessons, but this week in particular will see a focus on drowning prevention and water safety to raise awareness and equip our students with the skills needed to overcome any challenges they may face in the water.
Places Leisure Head of Swimming & Sport Mark Haslam tells us more:
“We are proud to be supporting Drowning Prevention Week again this year and the vital work done by the Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS). We will be playing our part by raising awareness across our centres by hosting specific sessions and activities throughout the week where People can learn more about being safe in the water.
“We are committed to raising awareness of water safety all year round. Unfortunately, People of all ages can experience difficulty in the water at any time of year, therefore we must ensure our efforts go beyond Drowning Prevention Week. We see learning to swim as a skill for life that can be learnt at any age. Through our swimming lessons and dedicated courses, we not only teach People how to swim but also about the dangers of water and how People can be safe.”
During drowning prevention week, our centres will be organising some of the following activities:
- Water safety swimming lessons
- Competitions
- Water safety drop in sessions
- Lifeguard Q&A
- and more!
A skill for life
It’s never too late to learn to swim and tap into all the benefits that come with that, from staying fit and active to having fun on family outings and holidays. But above all, swimming is a skill for life and Drowning Prevention Week is an important reminder of how we all need to prioritise staying safe in the water, wherever we are.
We pride ourselves on creating places for everyone, which includes giving everybody the opportunity to learn to swim.
Join swimming lessons online with your nearest Places Leisure centre.
Additional Resources
The RLSS also have a range of resources available on their website where you can read about Drowning Prevention Week, how to get involved and important water safety advice for holidays, open water swimming and much more.
Visit the RLSS website for more information.
Sources: RLSS Drowning Prevention Week
Frequently Asked Questions
Do life jackets prevent drowning?
A life jacket can absolutely prevent someone from drowning, provided it’s been well maintained and fits properly. Made of buoyant materials, a life jacket works by keeping a person afloat, face up in the water so that they can breathe.
Wearing a life jacket can buy someone precious time in which to be rescued and can dramatically increase survival in cold water.
How to prevent drowning?
There are several ways to prevent drowning, namely:
- Always supervise children around water
- Ensure pools and ponds are covered or fenced off
- Empty buckets, baths and other containers after use
- Take swimming lessons to develop water safety skills
- Never swim alone or in bad weather
- Learn how to perform CPR
- Wear a life jacket or buoyancy aid in open water.