AusLeisure

An $8.5 million redevelopment of Adelaide’s West Beach Surf Life Saving Club - the biggest club investment of its kind in South Australian history - is complete, delivering a new purpose-built site to support volunteers, attract visitors and save lives.

Officially reopening its doors on Sunday, the rebuild incorporates improved facilities across two floors and replaces the previous outdated clubrooms which were more than 50 years old.

Works on the redeveloped club started in late 2022 and have been funded through a South Australian Government partnership with the Federal Government, City of Charles Sturt, Surf Life Saving SA and West Beach Surf Life Saving Club (SLSC).

The modern facilities will better support current volunteer surf lifesavers as well as help attract and train new members with core lifesaving skills - at a location which saw thousands of visitors over summer.

Upgrades include a relocated first aid room and new ramp to the beach to ensure quicker emergency responses with improved ambulance access.

A new patrol control room will further boost safety for beachgoers, with greater storage to house vital lifesaving equipment and boats. A training and conference room, gym, change rooms and upstairs restaurant, bar and balcony also feature.

West Beach patrol teams clocked up 3,400 patrol hours over summer, successfully responding to numerous incidents, rescues and first aid cases.

The club has more than 700 members and 218 active patrolling members, making it one of the largest membership bases of any surf lifesaving club in South Australia.

West Beach SLSC runs a host of community activities, including the iconic VACSWIM school holiday program and the annual Blue and Pink Swim/Walk/Run, which raised more than $130,000 for breast and prostate cancer research and care.

In the 2023/24 season, more than 9,000 Surf Life Savers performed over 80,000 volunteer patrol hours, conducting nearly 100 lifesaving rescues and around 15,000 preventative actions and first aid treatments across the state’s coastline.

Welcoming the new facility, Surf Life Saving SA President, Sarah Cutbush commented “it’s been rewarding to see West Beach SLSC thrive in their new home this season and reap the rewards not just in lifesaving, but also surf sports, community programs, hospitality and more.

“The membership retention and increase in visitors since the redevelopment shows the important role that surf clubs can play in their communities – as well as saving lives and promoting water safety, surf clubs provide safe, accessible, and family-friendly hubs for locals and tourists alike.”

Images: The new West Beach Surf Life Saving Club.

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