Child Safety Around The Pool

Children look at a pool as one thing, a source of fun, they only want to do one thing and that is jump in! Cannon ball! Big splash! Laughter! Everybody is drenched! Surface with a big small on their face. As far as they are concerned that's all there is to it.

Sadly each year in the US 750 children drown from age 14 and lower. Much of these occur in private swimming pools while a further 4000 need a trip to the hospital. Being safe at the pool is no laughing matter.

You should always make sure you have your pool area fenced off, this not only stops your children from wandering around and falling while unattended, but the neighbors kids as well. The majority of deaths at the pool happen in this way. If you want you can do it yourself, or just hire somebody to build it for you, this may be the best idea to ensure it is properly constructed. The locks should be higher than your children can get to, and the gates themselves should automatically close and latch. The fence itself needs to be higher than 4 feet at the least.

Make sure no child plays by the pool unattended. It doesn't take longer than 2 minutes for a child to drown, you would be horrified if you knew how many children die this way as their parents left them alone for just a couple of minutes.

Use 'Touch Supervision' so you can guarantee your five year olds and younger remain protected. 'Touch Supervision' is easy to accomplish. It basically means while your youngsters are swimming you stay close enough to them at all times that you can reach out and touch them if you need to. Children over 5 are usually stronger swimmers however you could continue to follow this practice until you are certain they can handle themselves in the pool.

Make sure your children learn how to swim properly, this may require lessons. With enough lessons you can start to end your 'Touch Supervision'. It may be better to get them lessons because then you can be sure that professionals are teaching them everything they need to know to be safe in the water. What they learn at these lessons may one day save their life.

Make sure you have emergency equipment ready at the pool just in case. Make sure they have their own spot and are always at hand, they should never be messed with by anybody.

Anything that is electrical you have around the pool is connected to a ground fault circuit interrupter, this ensures it will shut off if water touches it. Children at play are rarely focusing on safety issues. They will regularly bump into things or knock them down. With this in mind it is in your best interest to keep radios or anything else electrical well away from the waterside.

Ensure you get a non-slip surface for your pool decking. This way when your children are playing by the pool and possibly running, even though you tell them not to, they are less likely to slip.