Saving lives on Aussie beaches: UNSW beach safety program for international students and foreigners to expand state-wide

MEDIA ALERT

• The UNSW Beach Ocean Safe program equips international students with essential skills and knowledge for safe beach experiences.
• It includes practical sessions with trained surf life savers from Surf Life Saving NSW.
• The successful program, working in partnership with Surf Life Saving NSW, will now be available to other universities, as well as community and migrant groups who want to offer it to their members.
• There will be opportunities to film the Beach Ocean Safe program in action across three days from Friday to Sunday (1 – 3 November).

Foreigners and locals alike flock to Australia’s beaches in droves once summer arrives. But overseas visitors to Australia are much more likely to die in the water than locals, with long term data showing more than one third of drowning deaths victims were born overseas.

UNSW Sydney has been on the forefront of this issue, developing the Beach Ocean Safe program to target overseas students and other migrants who are unfamiliar with Australian beach conditions.

Now, the Beach Ocean Safe program will be made available across the state to other universities, as well as migrant and community groups who want to help people in their community stay safe in the water.

Since it was first piloted by UNSW, Coogee SLSC and SLS NSW in March 2023, the Beach Ocean Safe program has taught more than 65 international students from over 15 countries how to stay safe on Australian beaches. Some have even become qualified lifesavers.

The program is designed to equip international students with essential skills and knowledge for safe beach experiences. It includes theory and practical sessions with trained surf life savers and teaches a range of skills including:

• how to read signs at the beach
• how to enter the water and move through the wave zone
• identifying rips, waves and tides
• swimming in different conditions
• basic CPR and first aid.

This weekend in Sydney, there will be a demonstration of the program at Coogee where international students from a range of universities will be learning crucial water safety skills.

A 2024 UNSW research study showed more than 75 per cent of international students did not understand the common safety terms ‘shore dump’ and ‘shore break’ and approximately half of misunderstood the sign “Always Swim Between the Flags”.

Royal Life Saving’s 2024 Drowning Report shows 25% of the 323 people who drowned in the 12 months from July 2023 to June 2024 were born overseas, with the highest rates from India, China, Nepal and the United Kingdom. Long term data shows overseas deaths account for more than a third of drowning deaths (34% over 10 years).

WHAT IS HAPPENING?
This year, UNSW established the Water Safety for International Students Community of Practice (WSIS CoP) for educational institutions, community organisations and government agencies to work together with the goal of enhancing water safety education and access to our multicultural communities.

Sponsored by Study NSW and led by UNSW, the WSIS CoP will launch a joint beach safety program, running from 1st to 3rd November 2024, involving six universities and one college.

The event will officially launch the WSIS CoP and marks a historic moment in the collaboration of NSW’s educational providers and Surf Life Saving, all working together to ensure international students stay safe on Australia’s beaches.

The group will also launch its new Beach Ocean Safe (BOS) Program Toolkit, which includes training materials, safety guidelines, and educational resources to equip surf clubs, educational providers and community organisations with the necessary tools and resources to successfully implement the BOS program anywhere in NSW. Groups simply contact their local SLSC to arrange a course.

FILMING and PHOTO OPPORTUNITIES
There will be opportunities to film the Beach Ocean Safe program in action across three days, with 42 international students from several universities participating. Best time to come is Sunday morning for the launch and beach activities.

INTERVIEW OPPORTUNITIES

• Mr Oliver Jackson, UNSW Water Safety Officer, Program lead
• International students – past and present program participants, including the first cohort of BOS graduates who recently become life savers
• Mr Steven Pearce, CEO, Surf Living Saving NSW.

MEDIA CONTACT

For a more detailed program of events and for interview requests, please contact:

Julia Holman
julia.holman@unsw.edu.au,0435 124 673

About the UNSW Beach Ocean Safe Program
The UNSW Beach Ocean Safe Program was designed for students who were born overseas or didn’t have the opportunity to learn how to navigate open water. Run over three weeks, it teaches participants to feel more confident in the water, giving them the skills they need to stay safe at the beach. It is run by the UNSW Health Promotion Unit in partnership with Coogee Surf Life Saving Club, Surf Life Saving NSW and Medibank.  

About the Water Safety for International Students Community of Practice (WSIS CoP)
The WSIS CoP is a group formed by UNSW to pool resources and develop a consistent approach to strengthen water safety education for international students and multicultural communities in Australia. Members of the WSIS CoP include:

• Surf Life Saving NSW and Coogee Surf Life Saving
• Educational providers: University of Western Sydney, University of Sydney, University of Wollongong, Charles Sturt University, Macquarie University, University of Newcastle, UNSW College
• Government: Study NSW (NSW Government), City of Sydney, Randwick City Council, Waverley Council, NSW Police Force
• Community Organisations: Medibank, Royal Life Saving Australia, Dee Why SLSC.

The group aims to expand accessible beach safety education and training across NSW, providing the means for cross-sector collaboration, social engagement and a breakdown of inter-cultural barriers.

• The UNSW Beach Ocean Safe program equips international students with essential skills and knowledge for safe beach experiences.
• It includes practical sessions with trained surf life savers from Surf Life Saving NSW.
• The successful program, working in partnership with Surf Life Saving NSW, will now be available to other universities, as well as community and migrant groups who want to offer it to their members.
• There will be opportunities to film the Beach Ocean Safe program in action across three days from Friday to Sunday (1 – 3 November).

Julia Holman
julia.holman@unsw.edu.au, 0435 124 673