Latest News

Back to Latest News back

 

New draft guidelines released for safe diving at aquatic facilities

New draft guidelines released for safe diving at aquatic facilities
December 13, 2024

A draft guideline for safe diving at aquatic facilities has been released by Royal Life Saving - Australia on behalf of the National Aquatic Industry Committee (NAIC) for public consultation.

The draft guideline has been released alongside an updated guideline for the management of lightning at aquatic facilities.

Diving is a popular activity at aquatic facilities, but without appropriate risk management, it can pose significant dangers. Research indicates that unsafe diving is a leading cause of spinal cord injuries, accounting for 10% of all spinal injuries and 20% of quadriplegia cases in Australia. The highest incidence occurs among children aged 10 to 14, followed by children aged five to nine. The total cost of spinal cord injuries to the Australian economy is estimated at $674 million annually (2024).

Recognising the importance of addressing these risks, the NAIC has prepared the Safe Diving at Aquatic Facilities Guideline which provides practical guidance for facility operators, covering management of recreational diving, competitive dive starts, teaching diving and provides references to the design and supervision of diving boards, platforms, and pool tanks.

RJ Houston, General Manager – Capability & Industry at Royal Life Saving noted "diving is an integral part of the aquatic experience, but ensuring the safety of all users, from recreational swimmers to professional athletes is paramount if the industry is to realise its full preventative health benefit to society."

The guideline is now open for public consultation until 15th February, after which the National Aquatic Industry Committee (NAIC) will review the feedback. A final guideline will be published following this process.

Georgie Nichol, General Manager at AUSTSWIM, highlighted the importance of aligning teaching practices with safety guidance adding "Teaching diving is a key component of many swim school programs, and it’s vital that all swimming and water safety teachers ensure their practices reflect the latest safety standards. These guidelines offer a valuable framework for educators, ensuring students learn to dive in a safe and structured way."

Mathew Simpson, Project Manager - National Programs at Swimming Australia, emphasised safety in competitive settings sharing "Diving is an action that is a crucial part of many aquatic sports and activities; diving, swimming, artistic swimming and more. These new guidelines support facility operators, coaches, officials and sporting organisations in ensuring safety for all athletes while training and competing."

In addition, NAIC has authorised an updated version of its Guideline for the Management of Lightning at Aquatic Facilities, ensuring this critical safety document reflects current best practices.

Related Articles

29th November 2024 - Royal Life Saving Australia launches 7th Edition Swimming & Lifesaving manual

6th November 2024 - Royal Life Saving highlights summer job opportunities in aquatic centres

23rd October 2024 - Royal Life Saving encourages aquatic facility managers to adopt key health and safety guidelines and regulations

16th October 2024 - Royal Life Saving launches new fatal drowning dashboard

3rd October 2024 - Royal Life Saving Queensland set to introduce AI-enhanced drowning detection systems training

3rd September 2024 - Royal Life Saving supports new Australian Standard for home swimming pool safety

25th July 2024 - Royal Life Saving highlights importance of World Drowning Prevention Day

23rd July 2024 - Gold Coast aquatic centres achieve platinum endorsement from Royal Life Saving

18th July 2024 - Royal Life Saving Society Queensland secures record Government funding deal and announces state’s first ever Platinum Endorsed Pools 

17th July 2024 - Royal Life Saving releases finalised National Aquatic Workforce Framework

10th July 2024 - Royal Life Saving releases new guidelines for inland waterway safety

8th July 2024 - Fluidra maintains support for Royal Life Saving WA’s Swim and Survive program

10th June 2024 - Royal Life Saving shares fears over childrens lack of swimming skills

5th June 2024 - Royal Life Saving Society - Australia and Lynxight announce aquatic facility safety partnership

17th October 2023 - Diving tower at Brisbane Aquatic Centre reaches new heights

14th June 2023 - Bruce Prance Dryland Diving Centre at HBF Stadium welcomed as state-of-the-art facility

12th December 2022 - New diving boards for City of Newcastle’s Lambton Swimming Centre

29th October 2022 - Diving Australia announces new Chief Executive appointment

26th March 2019 - Ballarat swimming academy fined $150,000 after student’s life changing diving injury


Support our industry news service
We hope that you value the news that we publish so while you're here can we ask for your support?

As an independent publisher, we need reader support for our industry news gathering so ask that - if you don't already do so - you back us by subscribing to the printed Australasian Leisure Management magazine and/or our online news.

 

supplier directory

The Complete Guide to Leisure Industry Products & Services.

See the directory see all

Intelligenz Solutions

Intelligenz provides Leisure Management Software for managing all your Program Registrations, Facility Bookings, Membership Sales and POS Transactions; including detailed Reporting, automated…

read more

Access / Billing / Finance / Marketing / Technology

 
 

GymMaster

Contact: Australia: (+61) 1800 849 001 New Zealand: (+64) 3 668 5727 International: (+1) 415 915 0375

read more

Fitness / Recreation / Technology

 
 

COMMERCIAL AQUATICS AUSTRALIA

Commercial Aquatics Australia provides aquatic solutions nationwide and is one of the largest and most experienced companies specialising in the design, construction, renovation, service, maintenance…

read more

Aquatics / Design / Play / Waterparks

 
 

ICP

ICP is an Australian-based company focused on indoor climbing. ICP will manage your project from initial design to completion and beyond, whether you're building an international-level climbing…

read more

Attractions / Fitness / Recreation

 
 

LIFE FLOOR (Aus & NZ)

Our team believes floors should be beautiful, comfortable, and engineered for safety, even when wet. Life Floor tiles meet six unique performance based standards: slip-resistance, impact absorption,…

read more

Aquatics / Play / Recreation / Safety / Surfaces

 
 

PathMinder

PathMinder Pty Ltd have partnered with AllUser Industries srl to bring Europe’s most advanced high security portals to the Australian and New Zealand markets. AllUser Industries started to…

read more

Access / Fitness / Recreation / Security

 
 

Technogym Australia

Technogym is the leading company in the Wellness and Fitness field all over the world. With 2,200 employees, 14 branches in Europe, U.S., South America, Asia  and Australia, Technogym exports its…

read more

Fitness / Technology / Wellness

 
 

iDwala Pty Ltd

iDwala is the Community Sports Facility Specialist offering the highest quality designs and technical expertise to Councils, Schools and Sporting Clubs looking to create sporting…

read more

Consultants / Design / Recreation / Sport / Surfaces

 
 
 
 

get listed with our suppliers directory

Get your business noticed in our targeted directory. Viewed by 10,000 industry professionals per week!

list your business