On 29 February, UK Transport Minister Robert Goodwin launched a national drowning prevention strategy that aims to halve the number of fatal incidents on or near water.
The document, created in response to the World Health Organisation’s report on global drowning, is the first drowning prevention strategy within the UK.
About 400 people drown and a further 200 take their own lives in our waters in the UK every year that equates to one accidental drowning every 20 hours. Activities in and around water are now safer than ever, but 44% of drowning fatalities happen to people who had no intention of entering the water.
The UK strategy highlights the areas that organisations need to focus on to make a difference and asks for support in contributing towards a national plan.
George Rawlinson, Chair of the National Water Safety Forum commented,
“Hardly a day goes past without some form of human tragedy taking place in UK waters. Around four-hundred people accidentally drown each year in the UK, this is unacceptable. The organisations represented through the National Water Safety Forums have united in a common aim – to prevent history repeating itself in this tragic way, year after year, and to use our resources in the most effective way to halve accidental drowning fatalities in the UK by 2026. It’s an ambitious target, but well worth striving for.”
For more information please visit http://www.nationalwatersafety.org.uk/