Royal Life Saving NSW is passionate about working with local communities to create safer and more inclusive aquatic environments. Last week we had the pleasure of hosting our Northern NSW Drowning Prevention Workshop to develop an Action Plan to reduce drowning in the region.

The North Coast of NSW has some of the most beautiful waterways in the world to enjoy, recreate and socialise in. However, it is one of the country’s leading locations for drowning incidents with over 600 fatal and non-fatal drowning incidents in the last 15 years. We must work together and challenge ourselves to ensure all Australians can enjoy a waterway of life.

Drowning Prevention is a critical issue within the community, and we can’t make a significant difference in this area without a collaborative and holistic approach. We are incredibly thankful to the over 35 local representatives from key sectors such as NSW Water Police, Maritime NSW, Marine Rescue, SES, Health, Office of Sport, local Councils, aquatic industry and more for joining us to discuss this important topic.

The objective of this workshop is to come together and develop Drowning Prevention Plan for Northern NSW including:

• Complex problems that require an adaptive and systematic approach within the support of a strong legal framework.

• Motivating individuals and communities to change their behaviour through context appropriate information.

• Present research, policy and practice that aim to provide insights and address the issues.

• Facilitate setting a collective agenda and action for Northern NSW.

• Engage, collaborate and strengthen partnerships with key stakeholders.

This is our fourth event of its kind that we have delivered in the past 12 months, with previous workshops taking place in the Albury-Wodonga region, Western Sydney and Tasmania.

To learn more about our water safety campaigns visit Campaigns (drowningprevention.org.au) and inland waterway safety at Inland Waterways | Royal Life Saving (drowningprevention.org.au).