Government ‘should do extra so youngsters depart faculty realizing find out how to swim’ after 7 die in horror heatwave drownings

After seven teenagers lost their lives in open water during the sweltering Bank Holiday weekend, the Outdoor Swimming Society said more could have been done to prevent their deaths

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Children must leave school knowing how to tackle the water, an expert warned, after the death toll of tragic teenagers who drowned over the Bank Holiday weekend increased to seven.

The Outdoor Swimming Society joined the demand for better education about the dangers of water. The time had come to flood social media with warnings as soon as the warm weather arrives, it said. Declan Sawyer was discovered during a search of Swanholme Lakes near Lincoln on Sunday, while the UK was recording record-breaking high temperatures.

Abbie Carmody-Pepper, also 15, died while bathing at Burrow Beach, Dublin. Her death came hours after the body of a teenage girl – identified locally only as Lil – was retrieved from the water at Kingsbury Water Park in Warwickshire.

On Monday, 13-year-old Reco Puttock was pulled from Leadbeater Dam near Halifax, West Yorkshire and last night, the body of a boy, 12, was recovered from the River Ribble in Lancashire.

A sixth young victim, a teenage boy, got into trouble in Rotherham and was found following a search and rescue operation as police today confirmed a body was found in the search for a 17-year-old, who went missing while swimming in a patch of open water in Cheshire.

The society’s Kate Rew, author of the Outdoor Swimmers’ Handbook, believed the biggest step toward reducing deaths is not by telling kids to stay out of the water, but by teaching them how to use it. She thinks targeted campaigns on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram will ram home a safety message severely lacking in recent years.

Ms Rew is concerned by statistics that show an alarming increase in drowning among low-income and ethnically diverse children. Research pointing to a need for greater government involvement, with one in four children leaving school unable to swim.

“Firstly, our thoughts are with everyone who has lost a loved one,” she told the Mirror after a heartbreaking couple of days. “These tragedies are devastating, and accidents wherever they happen can occur frighteningly quickly.

“We see tragic deaths every summer and think one of the biggest steps towards reducing these is helping more children become confident swimmers. People love water. The desire to seek it out in hot weather is natural and is never going to change.

“Humans are one of the few mammals who cannot instinctively swim, so for us it is a life skill that needs to be taught. But huge numbers of children are still leaving primary school unable to swim confidently, and the gap is strongly linked to income.

“Statistics suggest that in the most deprived parts of England, fewer than half of children can swim 25 metres by the end of primary school, compared to around three quarters in the least deprived areas – and, of course, swimming 25 metres in a warm indoor pool is very different from being able to swim the same distance in cold, moving outdoor water.

“We need more swimming lessons, greater access to pools, and more opportunities for children and adults to build confidence in water safely. Swimming is one of the most accessible and popular forms of exercise. This is about health, confidence, freedom and joy, as well as safety.”

It is not just teenagers in danger. A man in his 60s died on a beach after running into the sea to help two relatives who had “got into difficulty” on Tregirls Beach near Padstow, Cornwall, on Monday.

“When hot weather arrives, people will always seek out rivers, lakes and the coast,” she said. “The answer is not telling people to stay away from water, but sharing more information so people understand it and can enjoy it safely.

“We’d like to see far more practical water education shared where young people already are – including social media – particularly around cold water shock, currents, tides, jumping, and how to Float to Live. Simple messages save lives.

“Cold water can incapacitate even strong swimmers – never jump without knowing depth and hazards below; and if you get into trouble, float first, then control your breathing. People love water. That is never going to change. So our responsibility is to create confident, capable swimmers who understand both the joy and the risks of water.”

A drowning-prevention charity has demanded schools get open water safety on the curriculum now – as it could be too late by the time lessons start next year.

The Royal Life Saving Society fear waiting until September could have serious consequences following the deaths of the teenagers over the Bank Holiday weekend. While education bosses are committed to supporting the plan, the organisation has told them to act fast to prevent further tragedy.

It said: “RLSS UK contributed to reaching a significant milestone towards its goal of embedding lifesaving education in classrooms across all nations with the inclusion of water safety education in England’s RHSE curriculum.

“Whilst a foundation of water safety will be included in England’s school curriculum from September, this vital information needs to be taught now across the UK to prevent tragedies.”