AusLeisure

Sydney’s Inner West Council has become the first council in Australia to partner with Royal Life Saving NSW as Aquatic Safety Partners - a newly launched initiative that allows councils and pool operators to bring their aquatic risk, training, education, professional development, and Swim School needs under the Royal Life Saving banner.

The partnership supports council and pool operators to exceed industry best practice and reassures customers that their facilities prioritise safety above all. As part of the partnership, all five aquatic facilities in the Inner West Council will be provided a suite of services and products by Royal Life Saving NSW. 

These facilities include the Annette Kellerman Aquatic Centre, Ashfield Aquatic Centre, Fanny Durak Aquatic Centre Dawn Fraser Baths and Leichhardt Park Aquatic Centre.

Through this partnership, Royal Life Saving NSW will deliver:

• Aquatic Safety Assessments
• Mystery Guest Assessments
• Benchmark reporting
• Annual pool Lifeguard updates for all Lifeguards
• Regular Lifeguard in-service training
• Swim School partnership which includes access to the Royal Life Saving NSW Child Safety Portal and a range of Swim School resources
• Keep Watch partnership
• Membership and ongoing professional development for senior management

Inner West Senior Manager - Sport and Recreation Simon Duck was instrumental in advocating for this partnership with Inner West Council.

Seeing this as an important milestone in ensuring Inner West facilities are operating at the highest of standards and conforming to industry best practice, he advises “community safety is our highest priority and this partnership with Royal Life Saving is central to ensuring best practice at our aquatics facilities.

 “We have five facilities that include indoor and outdoor pools, moveable floors, deep water, and dark/harbour water. We feel confident that Royal Life Saving’s training and assessment services provide our teams with a greater sense of confidence to carry out their day-to-day duties and keep our community safe.”

Royal Life Saving NSW Chief Executive, Michael Ilinsky formally welcomed the establishment of a new partnership agreement with Inner West Council, added “our public swimming pools are critical and important social infrastructure that provide substantial health and well-being benefits for all Australians. This partnership enhances key water safety and aquatic solutions that will ensure heightened skill development of Inner West aquatic employees and a broader range of programs and services supporting the community.

“This is an Australian first and an exciting development as we see our communities re-engage with our pools and aquatic environments after a difficult and challenging year. I congratulate Inner West Council for its vision and commitment to community safety and look forward to ongoing opportunities.”

The newly launched Royal Life Saving Aquatic Safety Partnership initiative is available for all councils and pool operators in NSW, ACT and Tasmania and can be tailored to suit the needs and services for any aquatic facility or swim school.

Related Articles

7th December 2021 - Web event to introduce new We Swim campaign for aquatic and swim school industry

29th November 2021 - Royal Life Saving Society moves to appoint two independent directors

25th November 2021 - New Active Australia Alliance looks to represent ‘community leisure industry’

15th November 2021 - Royal Life Saving highlights ‘tens of thousands’ of job vacancies for lifeguards and swim teachers

12th November 2021 - New Royal Life Saving research shows social impact of the aquatic industry

9th November 2021 - Belgravia Leisure’s NSW aquatic facilities receive exceptional Royal Life Saving safety score

22nd September 2021 - Royal Life Saving announces new partnership program for swim schools

17th September 2021 - Royal Life Saving Webinar to mark 30 years of the GSPO and 25 years of aquatic facility safety assessments

6th September 2021 - Dawn Fraser Baths to open this week offering relief during Sydney’s COVID lockdown

3rd September 2021 - 400 delegates from 20 countries dial in to Australian Swim Schools Association’s 2021 Conference

23rd August 2021 - Royal Life Saving provides guidance on COVID-19 vaccinations and aquatic facilities

15th July 2021 - Stood-down workers protest at Annette Kellerman Aquatic Centre

3rd May 2021 - Aquatic Recreation Network Australia launched to support states and provide national advocacy opportunities

27th November 2020 - Inner West recognised as Sport NSW Local Council of the Year

13th September 2020 - Royal Life Saving survey suggests that swim school enrolments fell by 30% in August

25th April 2020 - NSW Government to spend $20 million on public spaces in Sydney’s inner west

9th October 2020 - Works completed at redeveloped Ashfield Aquatic Centre

28th July 2020 - New Ashfield Aquatic Centre expected to attract 500,000 visits a year

---

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.