SAM ROWLANDS, Member of the Welsh Parliament for North Wales, is backing a call for children and young people to stay safe around water.
Mr Rowlands. Shadow Minister for Health is supporting a Water Safety Event being held in Plas Madoc Leisure Centre, Wrexham, on Thursday July 25 for 10 – 16 year olds from Wrexham Rural South area, at 11am -1pm.
He said: “Everybody knows how passionate I am about children and young people enjoying the great outdoors and I was delighted to hear about this session offering them free guidance and advice about the dangers they could face.
“Earlier this year I had the pleasure of meeting with representatives from AdventureSmart UK and the Water Safety Wales group who are working to increase awareness of water safety as sadly drownings in Wales are on the increase.
“I am pleased to see a multi-agency approach to try and get the message across to our children and young people as I believe it is it is vital they have the opportunity to learn more about staying safe around water.
“I fully support Water Safety Wales who are now calling for people of all ages in Wales to be encouraged to learn key safety tips to help children and young people stay safe around the sea, rivers and other open water.”
The free event is being organised by North Wales Police with partners, including the Fire and Rescue Service and the Canal & River Trust.
During the session the various agencies will deliver talks around water safety, followed by a quiz whereby two x free family swimming passes will be up for grabs!
The Fire Service will also be deploying their Water Rescue Unit, and their powerboat to showcase the equipment they carry, along with some of their rescue techniques.
Water Safety Wales say too many people in Wales are drowning. Despite their efforts, people are more likely to drown now than they were when Wales’ first ever Drowning Prevention Strategy was published three and a half years ago.
Four people under 20 died in accidental drownings in Wales in 2022 – the highest number since comparable data became available from the National Water Safety Forum’s Water Incident Database (WAID) in 2015.
For more details or to sign up to attend the event contact [email protected] or [email protected].
