By Mikayla van Loon
Victoria’s summer has been blessed with a string of warm weather days encouraging beach and river attendance but with that comes an increased risk of drownings and rescues.
And while Yarra Ranges pools have recorded an uptake in swimming lesson attendance, Royal Life Saving estimated in October that more than 40 per cent of children don’t meet the national benchmark for swimming and water safety.
Just days into the new year, Life Saving Victoria recorded its busiest day, with lifeguards completing 145 rescues in 24 hours, most occurring on Saturday 4 January after temperatures reached the high 30s.
“We don’t remember a day when we’ve been that busy and that many Victorians have needed our help,” Life Saving Victoria state agency commander Kane Treloar told Guardian Australia.
The tragic death of an eight-year-old boy in the Mitchell River near Cobbannah in East Gippsland was also a reminder of the dangers not only at the beach but in inland waters.
In the Yarra Ranges, with the proximity to the Yarra River from Warburton to Warrandyte, both areas which have recorded fatalities, inland water safety and awareness is critical for children and adults.
One school-based program aimed at introducing primary-aged students to rivers and lakes and their unique conditions through kayaking has been operating for 20 years.
School Sports Victoria Yarra Division Officer and Upper Yarra Primary Schools Sports Officer Andrew Devisser said while the program has an element of fun and competition, it’s mostly an introduction to inland water safety.
“It’s about what’s under the surface that you can’t see. It might not have been there the day before but it might be there today. Logs and sticks float underwater. So a lot of it we are just making sure they’re aware, especially before they jump into a river,” he said.
“There’s also different positions when they fall out of a pipe. What’s the safest position to be in if you’re carried down by a current, the sort of stuff you hear all the time but we just put it into practice.”
Because of the ease in accessing the Yarra River for recreational use, particularly in Warburton, Mr Devisser said it’s important to trigger questions in kids’ minds before they enter the water.
“Most kids, 95 per cent of kids, are going to take away some knowledge about ‘I’m here in the river, what do I think of first before I get in? And what do I check for first before I start floating down and diving in off the side’,” Mr Devisser said.
In 2024, 11 per cent of drowning deaths occurred in the age group of 15 to 24, with the beach being the location of 36 per cent of these, followed closely by rivers and creeks on 31 per cent.
Concerningly the “drowning rates increase ten-fold from age 10 to age 20, likely due to increases in risk taking, and a lack of swimming, water safety and lifesaving skills across youth and young adult populations” the Royal Life Saving website reads.
There are three national benchmarks set for children to reach at the age of six, 12 and 17-years-old.
By 12-year-old, a child should be able to swim 50 metres continuously; float, scull or tread water for two minutes; and perform a survival sequence wearing light clothing.
This increases to continuously swimming 400 metres; float, scull or tread water for five minutes; and perform a survival sequence wearing heavy clothing by 17-years-old.
“Many young adults are quite simply being left unprepared for the dangers they may encounter in and around the water as they grow older. Without immediate action to address this skills gap, more lives could certainly be at risk,” Royal Life Saving chief executive officer Justin Scarr said.
A spokesperson from Belgravia Leisure, the operator of all pools in the Yarra Ranges, said “parents should recognise and prioritise swimming lessons as an essential life skill for (their) children”.
“Continued swimming lessons are crucial for reinforcing water safety skills, improving technique and building confidence, ensuring individuals of all ages remain prepared and capable in potentially hazardous water situations, such as rivers, lakes, ocean and at home,” they said.
“The key lessons that students benefit from in a learn to swim class are certainly water safety skills and knowledge, technique for strokes both competitive and survival as well as self-preservation skills such as floating.
“Additionally, lessons include vital information such as safety signage and the role of the lifeguard.”
In the period from December 2020 to March 2024, the spokesperson said “parents embraced learn to swim lessons post-pandemic”, seeing GoSwim enrolments rise 53 per cent at Monbulk Aquatic Centre and 38 per cent at Yarra Centre.
“Swimming isn’t just a fun activity—it’s a critical safety skill that can save a life. Drowning is preventable, and by ensuring that your child learns how to swim, you’re giving them the tools to stay safe around water,” the spokesperson said.
Concern over the lack of access to swimming lessons and pools in the urban parts of the Yarra Ranges since the closure of the Kilsyth Centenary Pool in March 2023 has been expressed deeply by petitioners and advocates of Rebuild Our Kilsyth Pool.
Janis Floyd, one of the lead petitioners to rebuild the pool, said at a Yarra Ranges Council meeting in May 2024 that “we lose many things” through the closure of the pool which benefit swim competency in all age groups.
“We lose the baby swim school, the primary school learn to swim and water safety, competition swimming, disability, autism and cultural swimming… school carnivals and fundraising events…work experience and teen jobs, aqua aerobics and finally aged care and dementia swim,” she said.
“The full spectrum of all these are significant to our health and wellbeing for the future.”
The Belgravia Leisure spokesperson said however, that after the closure staff were redeployed to ensure the Kilsyth Swim School students could continue lessons elsewhere.
“All students were offered the options of Jack Hort Pool, Yarra Centre, Monbulk Aquatic Centre and Knox Leisureworks,” they said.
“We also contacted every school utilising Kilsyth Centenary Pool to continue the schools swimming program at these alternate venues.
“Our GoSwim program is structured so that we always have room for more students, so there was never a waitlist for a place for any Kilsyth swim school students to continue at alternate venues.”
Ms Floyd said for many families though, travelling to some of these pools further away is not ideal and may be a barrier to getting their child lessons.
While most schools are subsidised by the State Government to conduct school swimming programs, Mr Devisser said it’s unusual for schools to run a kayaking program, especially for Grade 5 and 6 students.
“We’d be one of the few areas, few districts in the state, (maybe) the only district in the state that actually runs a kayaking program for primary kids, a lot of the secondaries will do their rafting and that down the Yarra especially now that we’ve got a couple of hire places in Warby,” he said.
“The Alpine School in Don Valley, they do a fair bit of kayaking and canoeing as well now. But we’re sort of unique in the primary space, there wouldn’t be too many primary schools that do what we do.”
Mr Devisser said schools engaged in the kayaking program stretch from Coldstream to Toolangi, Silvan to Warburton, as well as Lilydale and Montrose.
With the growing push for people to enjoy the region and get outdoors, Mr Devisser said the quality of the river compared to 15 years ago has improved immensely, making it a great summer destination for families but the message of safety is still key.
“There’s some great spots on the river they can access and they’re down there, paddling with their families and it’s good to see, we want them to use our local resources as well as just giving them general confidence in things that years ago, kids wouldn’t have had the opportunity to do.
“I reckon a lot of these kids will be going down there with their bikes, going for a ride and there’ll be hot days, they’ll jump in the water so the more we can make them aware, the better.”
The spokesperson from Belgravia said similarly, that swimming lessons encourage the safe use of natural bodies of water.
“Investing in swimming lessons now means giving your child the ability to protect themselves and others in and around water, while also ensuring they can safely enjoy the wonderful aquatic experiences our environment provides. It’s one of the most valuable gifts you can give them.”
