How to keep children safe around water
Exposure to drowning risks and hazards naturally vary throughout a person’s life. In children, differentiating between various lifestages has helped us to develop programs and safety initiatives specifically for each period of a child's life.
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What you need to know

  • Portable swimming pools include inflatable pools and wading pools
  • Portable pools pose a serious drowning risk to small children, even with very little water
  • It only takes seconds for a child to drown
  • Young children are attracted to water and are top heavy, so when they lean over to look into water or reach for an object they can easily topple over and drown in just a few centimetres of water
  • Most States and Territories require portable pools that are 30cm or more deep to be fenced
  • Australian Consumer Law requires portable pools and their retail packaging to be labelled with warnings drawing attention to drowning hazards and local fencing laws

How to stay safe

  • Always supervise children around water, with all of your attention, all of the time
  • Check with your local council for fencing requirements
  • Restrict access to water by correctly installing and regularly maintaining a pool fence with a gate that self-closes and self-latches
  • Never prop the gate open
  • Empty portable pools and store securely out of reach of young children
  • Ensure the pool cannot fill with rainwater or water from sprinklers
  • Don’t exceed the number of adults or children the pool can safely hold

Real-life story

A two-year-old girl drowned in a portable pool in the backyard of her house. The girl found her way back into the wading pool after having played in it earlier in the day. We know of many similar incidents. Royal Life Saving and consumer affairs agencies across Australia are urging parents to always actively supervise children of all ages when using portable pools and deflate them and store them securely, out of reach of children when not in use.

Related links and resources

  • NSW Child Drowning Report: A 15 year analysis of causal factors for drowning of children under 5 years in private swimming pools 2002/03-2016/17
  • Causes of distraction leading to supervision lapses in cases of fatal drowning of children 0–4 years in Australia: A 15‐year review
  • The prevention of child drowning: the causal factors and social determinants impacting fatalities in portable pools

Other links

  • Keep Watch campaign page
  • Home pool safety checklist

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  • Portable pool with child
Staying Safe
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