21 November

Media Release
For immediate release

Scouting New Zealand Joins Swim For Life

Scouting New Zealand (SNZ) has added its support to the Swim For Life initiative, in an effort to encourage more children to learn and develop swimming and survival skills.

The purpose of Swim For Life is that every New Zealand child by the age of twelve should be able to swim 200 metres confidently and competently with associated survival skills and water safety knowledge.

Swim For Life was developed by Water Safety New Zealand (WSNZ), the New Zealand Recreation Association and the New Zealand Swim Coaches and Teachers Association of New Zealand.  The initiative is designed to curb the high drowning rate in this country (twice the rate per capita than Australia) and the lack of swimming and survival skills of New Zealand children.

WSNZ General Manager Matt Claridge remarks that “SNZ’s support is a step in the right direction as the SNZ movement reaches over fourteen thousand New Zealand children a year.  The involvement of a national organisation in full support of the aims and objectives of the Swim For Life initiative is more progress to ensuring that the vital message and importance of learning the core life skill of swimming and survival skills is heard and learnt by all New Zealanders”.

SNZ’s National Operations Manager Richard Uerata-Jennings says, “This is a great opportunity for SNZ to be recognised for the Water Safety programmes it delivers through our weekly programmes, National Schools and events such as Jamborees and Regattas”.

SNZ and WSNZ plan to incorporate Water Safety Skills and a Swim For Life Challenge at the January 2008 National Scouting Jamboree in Christchurch.  The Jamboree will have over three thousand participants and two thousand leaders.  This provides an ideal opportunity to expose young New Zealanders to the core life skills required to enjoy water and the environment safely.

November marks the beginning of the national Swim For Life public awareness campaign.  Television, cinema and radio promotion will deliver this message of importance to all New Zealand communities.  The campaign reinforces that if you can’t swim and survive, you are helpless in the water.  Can your child swim?  Would your child survive?  Swim For Life!

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