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Working together to facilitate the development of a Local Water Safety Plan for the Townsville region, Royal Life Saving Society - Australia and James Cook University are calling for expressions of interest to join a multi-agency round table to address drowning prevention measures in North Queensland.

Royal Life Saving research has identified North Queensland as a targeted area for reducing drowning. In the 10-years from 2011/12 to 2020/21, 655 people drowned in Queensland, 33 of whom drowned in Townsville - equating to an average of three people every year in the region.

 Further, the Ross River in Townsville has been identified within the top 10 river blackspot drowning locations in Australia, claiming 10 lives in the past 10 years.

Speaking of the collaboration, Professor Richard Franklin of James Cook University said working with interested parties towards a coordinated strategy supported by Royal Life Saving was an obvious decision for strengthening local approaches to water safety.

Professor Franklin stated “James Cook University has been working in close partnership with Royal Life Saving for over five years in the water safety research space, particularly inland waterway drowning prevention. This initiative follows years of research from both James Cook University, Royal Life Saving and other key research bodies.”

Royal Life Saving has been an active facilitator of drowning prevention and water safety initiatives for over 125 years, successfully leading several multi-agency collaborations including initiatives like the development of the Australian Water Safety Strategy 2030, the National Swimming and Water Safety Framework, the National Aquatic Industry Committee and associated Guidelines for Safe Pool Operations.

The Australian Water Safety Strategy 2030 (AWSS) identifies key evidence-based activities to reduce drowning by 50% over the next decade. One of the key initiatives identified in the AWSS to achieve the drowning prevention target is for communities to development a Local Water Safety Plan. A Local Water Safety Plan outlines existing and future community-based actions tailored to the local community contexts and emphasises the role of multi-sectoral collaboration and the capabilities and needs of varying stakeholders.

RLSSA Chief Executive and Australian Water Safety Council convenor Justin Scarr, noted “at Royal Life Saving, we believe working together is better and that only through coordinated and sustained multi-lateral advocacy approaches can we effectively address the complex problem of drowning prevention.

“We recognise that we can’t supervise all aquatic locations all of the time, nor can we resuscitate our way to drowning prevention. It takes a systems-approach and working in collaboration with multiple agencies, interested parties and the community themselves to sustainably reduce drowning.”

The objectives of the initiative are to:

• Facilitate a common understanding of local drowning and water safety issues specific to the region
• Present key research and data relevant to the area to interested parties and those with a responsibility for water safety
• Support a commitment to working together on a collective strategy for the region
• Commence working towards collective solutions/actions that could be collated into a local water safety drowning prevention plan

Date and location of the initiative
The initiative will be held as a series of round table discussions, comprised of a series of presentations and workshops occurring over a three-month period May-July.

The first Round Table workshop will be held on Friday 6th May 2022, at James Cook University, Douglas, Townsville.

Royal Life Saving is extending the invitation to all agencies and organisations with an interest and/or responsibility for water safety and drowning prevention.

To express an interest in being involved, click here to complete an Expression of Interest form which outlines the Terms of Reference and return to: aquatics@rlssa.org.au 

The Expression of Interest process closes COB Friday 1st April 2022.

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