Aquatics and Swimming Safety
Tragedy can strike in the blink of an eye. Drowning and spinal injuries happen every day in swimming pools, oceans, lakes, rivers and streams. Regardless of the type of aquatic environment you offer, incidents of this nature can be some of the most traumatic and costly any camp program could face.
Prioritizing key operational areas, ensuring the overall maintenance and condition of your aquatic facility and environment, and most importantly having appropriately trained and certified staff supervising all aquatic activities will help protect your participants and set them up for a safe and enjoyable swimming experience every time. Check out our resources below for support and to learn more about aquatic safety!
Do you offer swimming related activities? Review the following resources to better understand associated risks, as well as helpful tips and best practices when it comes to aquatics and swimming safety.
- 10 Essentials of Swimming Safety
- Keep Your Swimmers Safe
- Swimming Safety Guide
- Boating Safety Guide
- Water Safety Essentials and Resources – American Red Cross
- Swimming Safety – Safe Kids Worldwide
- Water Safety – YMCA
Once you understand the basics, it's time to start taking concrete actions. Use the tools below to better prepare your people and organization around swimming/aquatic programming safety:
- Swimming Safety Assessment
- Water Safety Assessment
- Standards-At-A-Glance – American Camp Association (ACA) Accreditation Program
- Program Aquatics Standards Resources – American Camp Association
- State Laws & Regulations Database – American Camp Association
- American National Standard for Public Swimming Pools - ANSI/APSP/ICC-1 2014 – American National Standards Institute
- American National Standard for Suction Entrapment Avoidance In Swimming Pools, Wading Pools, Spas, Hot Tubs and Catch Basins - ANSI/PHTA/ICC-7 2020 – American National Standards Institute
- American National Standard for Water Quality in Public Pools and Spas - ANSI/PHTA/ICC-11 2019 – American National Standards Institute
- Standard for Aquatic Recreation Facilities - IAF-9 2005 – American National Standards Institute
- Lifeguard & Water Safety Training – American Red Cross
- Aquatic Recognized Certifications – American Camp Association
- Aquatics Supervision Chart – American Camp Association
- Aquatics: Staff Skills Verification - Lifeguarding – American Camp Association
- Aquatics Staff Skills Verification: Site-Specific Watercraft Rescue and Emergency Procedure – American Camp Association
Additional Resources and Supporting Organizations
Check out the following additional resources, supporting organizations and related links to learn more about important topics and issues related to aquatics and swimming programming safety.
- Jeff Ellis & Associates
- International Life Saving Federation
- U.S. Lifesaving Association
- USA Swimming
- American Heart Association
- National Center for Early Defibrillation
Swimmer Safety Program
We encourage organizations to screen all swimmers before they spend any extended period in the water. To help you and your staff confidently determine swimming abilities, we have developed a Swimmer Safety Program that includes the following resources:
- Evaluation forms to fill out for each swimmer, noting what tests were passed and what color wristband was issued to the individual.
- Guidelines for lifeguards and supervisors that explain tests you can use to determine swimmers’ skill levels.
- Easily identifiable color-coded swim bands to issue to swimmers upon completion of their evaluation.
Swim bands and other Swimmer Safety Program resources are available to customers at no cost in limited quantities.
PLEASE NOTE: We are currently transitioning our internal ordering systems and, to help expedite this shift, are suspending the ability to order resources for the time being. Swim bands and other Swimmer Safety Program resources will be available to order again in February 2024. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
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