For the past 12 weeks, we’ve worked with The Black Swimming Association and The Victory Academy to design and deliver a life saving water safety programme. With drowning ranking among the leading causes of accidental death, claiming the lives of approximately 400 people each year, it’s crucial to equip young people with life-saving skills and knowledge.
Our programme supported and empowered a group of 17 young people from The Victory Academy who lacked swimming proficiency to become competent swimmers and advocates of water safety. In addition to their weekly pool sessions, the programme provided unique opportunities to explore aquatic-related careers. Through a range of enrichment activities, participants gained invaluable insights into different aspects of the aquatic industry.
The first activity was discovering the world of managing the River Thames at Port Of London Authority and learning about the heroic efforts of the RNLI at their Gravesend Lifeboat Station.
Later in the programme they headed to London to visit Sky Studios for a hands-on broadcast production experience and to produce their own water safety news reel.
At Pentland Brands with Gung Ho they were immersed into aquatics branding and public relations.
The final enrichment activity took place at Chatham Maritime Watersports Centre where attendees learnt the art of kayaking and put their team working skills to the test with a raft build, race activity and recorded a water safety rap.
Throughout the programme, we documented the transformative journey of these young individuals, capturing their growth and achievements. These experiences were compiled into a 10-minute film, which was screened for the first time at a celebration event.
We’re proud to say that this programme, delivered in collaboration with The Black Swimming Association and The Victory Academy, has equipped these young people with life-saving water safety skills, as well as providing exposure to broader aquatic careers.
