A record number of volunteer surf lifesavers will go bush over the next three weeks to deliver important beach and water safety lessons to thousands of NSW primary school students in Surf Life Saving NSW’s flagship Beach to Bush education program.
Over 8,000 school children will attend one of the more unique lessons on the school calendar when the 27th annual Beach to Bush program tours rural and regional towns including Wagga Wagga, Temora, Coonamble, Bowral, Scone and Jerilderie.
With COVID-19 travel restrictions limiting interstate and overseas travel, more families are heading to the NSW coastline for holidays. With summer fast approaching, it is the ideal time to educate children about beach safety.
For many children, attending the Beach to Bush classes will be their first interaction with a surf lifesaver in an iconic red and yellow patrol uniform. Some have never actually been to the coast or swum in the ocean, let alone learnt about beach rips and dangerous marine species.
Over the past 27 years, over 255,000 primary school-aged students have benefited from the Beach to Bush program delivered by dedicated, volunteer surf lifesavers.
The coastal safety program has been carefully designed by SLSNSW educators to ensure the lesson content is age-appropriate. Children attending the program learn about the role of surf lifesavers, why they should always swim between the flags, how to spot a rip current, what to do if you get into trouble at the beach and the different types of marine life that can be found along the coast. The program also includes information about water safety on inland waterways such as lakes, rivers and dams.
It is Surf Life Saving NSW’s vision that every student has access to important coastal safety information – regardless of the size of their school. The smallest school the lifesavers will visit, Avoca Public School, has just five pupils. At the other end of the spectrum is St Thomas Aquinas Primary School in Bowral which has 366 students and will also enjoy a Beach to Bush class.
The NSW Government (through the Deputy Premier’s Discretionary Fund) and Your local club have provided financial support for the Beach to Bush program.
ClubsNSW CEO Josh Landis said that the club industry is enormously proud of its long and close association with Surf Life Saving NSW – especially their support of the Beach to Bush educational program.
“Given the current travel restrictions, we will see many children from regional areas flocking to the coast with their families for the summer holidays, so the message of beach safety remains an important one. Your local club is proud to support the Beach to Bush program in its 27th year,” Mr Landis said.
“In what has been an extremely challenging year for us all, the continued service and dedication of surf life savers in our state is recognised and appreciated now more than ever,” he said.
Julia Kiss, Community Education Manager at SLSNSW, said that the organisation has ambitions to grow the Beach to Bush program.
“Following the success of Beach to Bush over the past 27 years, we are expanding this program in 2020 with the aim of bringing coastal education to more students and schools in remote and rural communities,” said Julia Kiss.
Surf Life Saving NSW Beach to Bush spokesperson Jenni Clarke said the program is a wonderful opportunity for volunteer lifesavers to share their knowledge and passion for beach safety with children in rural and remote areas.
“Sharing our passion for the beach and the coastline with children, regardless of their location, is an important part of our strategy to educate and keep the beachgoing public safe,” said Jenni Clarke.
“With more people than ever heading to the NSW coastline, Beach to Bush is becoming more important and we know it is something that both the school children and our volunteer surf lifesavers look forward to taking part in each year.
“Our volunteer lifesavers are often the first contact these children have with a real surf lifesaver and they consider it a big responsibility,” Jenni Clarke concluded.
The Beach to Bush Program is supported by the NSW Government and Your local club. It is the largest and most innovative surf safety education program in Australia, having reached more than 255,000 primary school students since it began in 1994.
2020 Beach to Bush Tour locations:
Tour 1: Far North Coast – including Boomi,Tenterfield, Yetman, Bonalbo, Urbenville and Lismore
Tour 2: Hunter Valley – including Denman, Milbrodale, Lower Belford, Glen William, Martins Creek and Abermain
Tour 3: Northern Tablelands – including Armidale, Uralla, Woolbrook, Walcha
Tour 4: Upper Hunter Valley/Liverpool Plains – including Scone, Willow Tree, Quirindi, Gunnedah, Mullaley,Tamworth
Tour 5: Central Western Slopes/New England – including Pilliga, Coonamble, Tooraweenah, Mendooran, Warren, Merriwa,
Tour 6: Riverina & Central West – including Griffith, Ardlethan, Temora, Coolamon, Wagga Wagga, Kapooka and Naradhan
Tour 7: Blue Mountains/Central Tablelands – including Boorowa, Wyangala, Spring Hill, Lue, Kandos, Meadow Flat, Faulconbridge, Katoomba and Wentworth Falls
Tour 8: Southern Highlands – including Bowral, Glenquarry, Avoca, Marulan and Wingello
Tour 9: Canberra/ACT – including Franklin, Evatt, Spence, Pearce, Mawson, Red Hill, Warramanga and Deakin
Tour 10: Southern Riverina – including Jerilderie, Lowesdale, Humula, Tumut, Cooma
Tour 11: New England High Country – including Bundarra, Guyra, Warialda, Inverell, Ebor and Delungra
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