Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service (TWFRS) and The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) have joined forces to help save young lives.
 

The organisations are working together on a new, targeted approach to water safety education, focusing on secondary schools in communities identified as a priority.

 

The programme brings together the expertise of both organisations to deliver engaging, practical lessons to help young people understand the risks around water, and how to respond safely in an emergency.

The sessions are jointly organised and delivered by staff from both services, ensuring consistent, high impact safety messaging. A two-week campaign saw the team reach 783 pupils.

During the lessons, pupils learn essential water safety skills, including:

• How to recognise danger
• When and how to call for help
• The safest actions to take if someone gets into difficulty in the water.

The sessions place a strong emphasis on bystander safety, reinforcing the message that at pupils should never enter the water themselves but instead use available rescue equipment such as life rings or throwlines wherever possible.

The programme supports the National Fire Chiefs Council Be Water Aware campaign, which runs from 27 April to 3 May.

The national campaign highlights the impact of water related incidents and encourages simple, practical actions that can prevent drownings and save lives. – https://nfcc.org.uk/our-services/campaigns/be-water-aware/

By delivering these lessons directly in secondary schools, TWFRS and the RNLI aim to build lasting water safety awareness, equipping young people with the confidence to make safer choices around water and to act responsibly if an emergency occurs.

For more information about the Be Water Aware campaign, visit:
https://nfcc.org.uk/our-services/campaigns/be-water-aware/