Last week saw a new joint lifesaving education programme launched in Pembrokeshire which is estimated to reach hundreds of local children over the next year.

Tenby Surf Lifesaving Club has teamed up with commercial lifeguard training provider, Water Safety Europe, to deliver a new, structured, age-specific pool-based education programme, which it is hoped will not only attract new members to the club, but will also offer new exciting training opportunities for its existing Nipper and Junior members.

The club has offered junior education programmes since its creation in 1993, offering year-round training, with summer activities on the resort’s award-winning South Beach and winter activities in the local pool.

The new pool-based programme will see over 50 local children a week attend the charity’s junior training held at the town’s leisure centre and being put through the new structured training.

The new ‘Nipper Lifesaver’ scheme, which has been developed by Water Safety Europe, includes three core awards that are split into nine stages, designed to build confidence as well as practical water fitness, skills and survival techniques.

This fun and exciting water safety award scheme is aimed at children aged eight to 12 years and teaches participants to stay safe around water as well as teaching them what to do in an emergency and who to contact in an emergency.

Alongside their new nipper programme, the club has also launched a new, in-house ‘Junior Lifesaver’ scheme that will target the club’s 12 to 15-year-old members. This new scheme consists of two separate awards that will be delivered over the 21-week period and will focus on teaching vital water safety skills as well as personal survival, rescue techniques and fitness.

The club is now working with Water Safety Europe to extend these programmes to incorporate beach based awards that will be launched in Easter 2016.

Water Safety Europe’s Angelo Fecci said: “Structured programmes like this are essential for teaching the community vital water safety awareness and lifesaving skills. The new awards will enable the Tenby SLSC volunteers to deliver in-house, structured and relevant sessions. We have been so glad to donate our lifeguard trainers time and expertise to helping this local charities project.”

The new project has come about during the same time that calls for improved water safety education are being voiced across the UK, with organisations close to home set to launch a Welsh petition calling for action.

Statistics from the National Water Safety Forum show that in 2013 there were 381 water related deaths within UK water ways with 73 per cent of incidents involving under 19s.

“We are extremely lucky to have such a club and opportunities within our county as there are many, some surprisingly close to home, without such facilities and now calling for such programmes,” said Junior lifesaving coach Ashley Griffiths. “The aim of our junior training has always been to educate young people of the dangers and to prevent them ever getting into difficulty in the first place. Many of our junior members will work their way up through the club and will ultimately go on to train as and work as a professional lifeguard.”

For further information about the club and its projects, please search ‘Surf Link - Tenby’ on Facebook

For information on event water safety services or lifeguard training, please visit www.watersafetyeurope.co.uk or search for them on Facebook or Twitter.