Next month, Water Safety Scotland (WSS) will celebrate a decade of action with a special evening that will be held at Scottish Parliament.
Taking place on Wednesday 11 December from 6-8pm, this event brings together MSPs and the membership and supporters of Water Safety Scotland, including the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS), RNLI, Maritime and Coastguard Agency, Scottish Swimming, Sport Scotland, and Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park. It will be hosted by Clare Adamson, MSP for Motherwell and Wishaw and the Convenor of the Cross-Party Group on Accident Prevention and Safety Awareness.
Established in 2014 by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), WSS is a voluntary association of organisations and individuals, working together to promote the safe use of water in and around Scotland’s waterways.
This event acknowledges the dedicated work of WSS members, partners and staff over the past decade, as well as the significant strides made in improving water safety measures and messaging in Scotland, including:
- The launch of Scotland’s Drowning Prevention Strategy in 2018, followed by the six-year review of the strategy in 2024, which shows a reduction in accidental water-related fatalities of 10 per cent
- The release of the Drowning and Incident Review (DIR) process in May 2023 by RoSPA and SFRS. A live in-year dashboard is available on the WSS website
- The introduction of the Partnership Approach to Water Safety (PAWS) groups. PAWS (or equivalent) groups run in 31 of Scotland’s local authority areas
- Three Water Safety Open Days in support of the World Drowning Prevention Day, held annually on 25 July
- The creation of downloadable water safety education resource packs, for use across all stages and ages of the Scottish curriculum
- A full audit and review of Scotland’s water safety signage, leading to the publication in June 2024 of a guide to producing consistent and clear water safety signage, aimed at landowners and managers
- An established presence at global safety events, including presentations at Safety 24 in New Delhi, India, on Water Safety Scotland’s programme of work and the DIR
- Work with retailers such as Lomo, Tiso and Ellis Brigham to improve awareness of water-based activities
Carlene McAvoy, Senior Policy Manager at RoSPA and Founder of WSS said of the event: “This is an important opportunity to bring members and supporters of Water Safety Scotland together in one place and to recognise the impressive amount of work that has been undertaken in Scotland over the last ten years. It is also the chance to discuss future support for water safety, ensuring that we are doing everything we can to help save lives both now and in the future”
Minister for Victims and Community Safety, Siobhian Brown, said:
“I commend the considerable prevention work and awareness raising that has been undertaken by Water Safety Scotland. Without their work over the last 10 years, many more lives are likely to have been lost through accidental drowning which of course leaves a devastating impact on victim’s families and surrounding communities.
The Scottish Government works very closely with Water Safety Scotland and other partners, including local authorities, Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, to implement and support initiatives that can help raise awareness of the hazards around water and we will continue to do so to advance this important programme of work.”
Ms Adamson, MSP for Motherwell and Wishaw and the Convenor of the Cross-Party Group on Accident Prevention and Safety Awareness said:
“Water Safety Scotland has been integral to getting water safety where it needs to be in Scotland’s policy landscape.
“Despite our extensive coastlines, lochs, and rivers, water safety remained a critically overlooked aspect of policy until the advent of Water Safety Scotland and Scotland’s Drowning Prevention Strategy.
“Meanwhile. the Drowning Incident and Review process is making substantial progress in addressing gaps in data gathering – which remains an issue across safety policy.
“Behind every statistic is a human with friends and loved ones. We must not forget that as we resolve to improve outcomes in water safety and save lives; this must be a collective priority.
“It has been a privilege working with the team at Water Safety Scotland, and dedicated partners in safety policy, over the last decade. It is fantastic that we celebrating this milestone and we can look forward to another decade of building on this progress.”
