Kidsafe Victoria, Life Saving Victoria, and Farmsafe Australia have urged families to set up safe play areas and actively supervise children around water.
The call comes in a bid to reduce the number of drowning incidents.
According to the latest statistics from the Royal Life Saving Society of Australia’s National Drowning Report, 26 per cent of toddler drownings in 2022/23 occurred in inland waterways such as lakes, dams, rivers, and creeks.
Toddlers are defined as aged zero to four.
Among five-to-fourteen-year-olds, 43 per cent drown in inland waterways.
Life Saving Victoria Manager of Research and Evaluation Dr Hannah Calverley said teaching children how to swim and having an emergency plan were ways to ensure their safety around water.
“We urge all families to prioritise enrolling children in swim classes to learn water safety and to keep their first aid and CPR qualifications current,” said Dr Calverley.
Advice from the leading safety agencies on how to improve water safety included making sure children are always actively supervised by an adult when in or around water, setting up a safe play area away from water hazards, and making sure the play area is securely fenced.
Other tips are dressing children in brightly coloured clothing, covering water storage areas, and regularly updating first aid skills like CPR.
Information: www.kidsafevic.com.au
