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Speaker 1: We recently learned that WA has the worst rounding statistics

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Speaker 1: in the country, and heading into summer, we want to

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Speaker 1: talk about the importance of knowing how to swim and

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Speaker 1: also knowing CPR. Today WA education ministers have been Winton

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Speaker 1: is joining us.

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Speaker 2: Good morning, Good morning, Lisa Russell, thank you so.

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Speaker 1: Much for your time. Now, it has been reported that

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Speaker 1: w WA has the worst drowning statistics in the nation.

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Speaker 1: Just yesterday the West reported more than three people almost

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Speaker 1: round in w WA every week last summer. So, from

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Speaker 1: your department, what are the specific targets set for this year.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, so in terms of when you talk about my department,

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Speaker 2: of course I'm the Minister for Education, so my focus

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Speaker 2: and goal is to make sure that we provide quality

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Speaker 2: swimming lessons and water safety to as many students as

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Speaker 2: possible throughout the state. And of course, in that regard,

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Speaker 2: we're in our one hundred it's one hundred and first

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Speaker 2: year of providing interm swimming lessons to all school students

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Speaker 2: right around the States and you know, we have the

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Speaker 2: most comprehensive program anywhere in Australia and indeed the Southern Hemisphere,

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Speaker 2: and we need to continue to promote that to make

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Speaker 2: sure in the first instance, kids have those water safety skills.

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Speaker 1: Are they compulsory those classes? I mean, you'd be mad

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Speaker 1: not to, but are they?

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Speaker 2: Look, we know the majority of schools, in fact, over

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Speaker 2: eight hundred schools, some two hundred thousand students each year

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Speaker 2: participate in our interm swimming classes throughout the States. It's

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Speaker 2: a huge logistical exercise, but it's one that's been going

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Speaker 2: for many, many years, and it's part and powerful of

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Speaker 2: the curriculum in school in schools.

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Speaker 3: Right around WA Is that just for primary school though?

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Speaker 3: That doesn't take over into high school though, does it?

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Speaker 2: Yeah? No, Our interm swimming classes are geared towards students

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Speaker 2: from five from when they start school pre primary.

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Speaker 1: I think it is.

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Speaker 2: Right through to seventeen. But you would also be aware

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Speaker 2: that some schools choose different kinds of programs as kids

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Speaker 2: head into high school. I know predominantly primary schools take

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Speaker 2: up this offer because it's really important get to get

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Speaker 2: kids early when they're really really young, to establish that

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Speaker 2: really great attitude, positive attitude towards swimming, but also important

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Speaker 2: to develop those water safety skills because they go together.

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Speaker 1: Sometimes getting two children in regional, remote or indigenous and

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Speaker 1: multicultural communities who traditionally have lower participation rates for you know,

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Speaker 1: obvious reasons, it can be trickier. How are you ensuring

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Speaker 1: equitable access to their swimming and water safety lessons?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, look, it's a great question because we all know

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Speaker 2: we've got a great state, but it's a vast state

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Speaker 2: and challenging for particularly regional remotes and to really sort

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Speaker 2: of guests to continue our investment and continue that success

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Speaker 2: of that in term swimming program, we've established the Special

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Speaker 2: School of Water Safety, sorry Swimming and Water Safety over

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Speaker 2: three million dollars to help better coordinate our efforts in

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Speaker 2: making sure that all kids, no matter where they are

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Speaker 2: in the state, have access to this really critically important

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Speaker 2: skill to ensure that when we go out and enjoy

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Speaker 2: Western Australia the water that we do so particularly kids

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Speaker 2: and young people, in a safe way and have them

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Speaker 2: required skills to keep themselves.

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Speaker 3: Minister, it was reported last year that there was actually

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Speaker 3: a bit of a shortage of qualified swimming instructors. So

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Speaker 3: what are the government doing in order to recruit and

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Speaker 3: train and retain some of those much needed swimming instructors.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, look, it is a challenge to get qualified staff

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Speaker 2: in a variety of industries, can I say, and swimming

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Speaker 2: instructors are no different, and that has been a particular

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Speaker 2: focus of our newly established school to make sure that

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Speaker 2: we continue to find not any school leavers university students,

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Speaker 2: but also to support local people living in regional areas

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Speaker 2: to provide them with the training and expertise to take

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Speaker 2: up those roles because we know, certainly I've taught and

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Speaker 2: worked in the Bush, there is a bunch of people

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Speaker 2: who live in those communities who are capable of taking

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Speaker 2: up those positions, and so we want to make sure

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Speaker 2: that we provide the training and support for local people

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Speaker 2: to do that important work.

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Speaker 1: Yeah. Well, the Vacswim holiday swimming program was free this

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Speaker 1: past December January period, which is fantastic and of course

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Speaker 1: it was a huge hit. Are there plans to continue

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Speaker 1: that access this year?

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Speaker 2: And yes, yeah, Lisa Vakswim. So for those listeners. So firstly,

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Speaker 2: we talked about interm swimming, which is when kids go

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Speaker 2: swimming as part of their normal school day and that's

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Speaker 2: husually successful. Some two hundred thousand plus students participate and

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Speaker 2: vas wheen of course, those programs that are held in

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Speaker 2: October and also traditionally over the summer period where that

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Speaker 2: that program has been going for over one hundred and

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Speaker 2: seven years and has always and I really want to

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Speaker 2: stress this has always been heavily subsidized and affordable for

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Speaker 2: families and continues to be so. Right.

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Speaker 1: Well, you know, one of the statistics that really surprised

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Speaker 1: me to have been was how it's the younger kids

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Speaker 1: actually that are the lower rate of drownings these days,

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Speaker 1: and it's us older ones that are you know, pushing

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Speaker 1: up those US older ones that are.

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Speaker 3: Pushing up those statistics.

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Speaker 1: So this is all really good news. You know, if

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Speaker 1: you know, if the kids get access to these things

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Speaker 1: and they learn how to swim, we might be able

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Speaker 1: to reverse that statistic.

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Speaker 3: Remind us of a few lessons.

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Speaker 2: Yeah yeah, look a look, and I think you know

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Speaker 2: there is no substitute for being diligent when we go

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Speaker 2: and enjoy our great environment in Western Australia and swimming

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Speaker 2: lessons are important, but it's also important to keep yourself

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Speaker 2: safe and keep your mates safe and look after each other.

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Speaker 2: We've got plenty of great safe places to swim, including

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Speaker 2: between the flags, and it's a it's a good reminder

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Speaker 2: to have this conversation that, irrespective of what our past

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Speaker 2: swimming history is, water is a dangerous place and we

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Speaker 2: all need to look out for ourselves and each other.

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Speaker 1: All right, Well, thank you so much for joining us today.

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Speaker 3: Thank you minister.

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Speaker 2: Hey, look, I really think it's a great conversation.

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Speaker 1: Really appreciating this

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Speaker 3: Early before summer hits and everybody hits hits the water