ABTA urges holidaymakers to be #WaterWise this summer
An area of focus over the coming weeks is helping holidaymakers to swim safely and enjoy the water wisely, following a high number of incidents in the UK and abroad of people getting into difficulty in the water.
Using the hashtag #WaterWise, ABTA will be regularly sharing the updated swim safety advice at abta.com/swimsafe across its social media channels, which includes practical tips to help people get ready for the water, how to swim safely in the pool, at the beach or in open water, and extra advice for families.
The association is also amplifying advice from water safety experts, the Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK), to help holidaymakers get ready for the water. This includes sharing the RLSS UK’s new series of videos to help families enjoy the water safely on holiday, and supporting its annual Drowning Prevention Week (17-24 June 2023) by sharing dedicated social media posts and assets to help people stay safe while enjoying the water.
Angela Hills, Head of Destinations at ABTA, says: “Having fun in and around the water is a staple part of people’s summer holidays, but sadly accidents do happen, and they can have devastating consequences. By raising awareness of the risks and the steps people can take to look after themselves and others, we hope to help people have fun and enjoy the water safely this summer.”
Lee Heard, Charity Director at RLSS UK, says: “It is fantastic to have the support of organisations such as ABTA to reach even more people with our Drowning Prevention Week campaign. This year we are aiming to educate families on the Water Safety Code as we want to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to enjoy being in, on and around water this summer. Sadly, we often see accidental drownings spike in the warmer summer months, and with Drowning Prevention Week, and the help of companies such as ABTA, we aim to reach as many young people and families as possible to educate them on water safety. We have a great range of free resources available on our website rlss.org.uk and will be sharing vital water safety messages across social media during the campaign week.”
ABTA members are encouraged to help their customers be water wise this summer by linking to the advice at abta.com/swimsafe in their customer communications, by sharing the social resources available from ABTA in the marketing toolkit in the Member Zone, and by getting behind the Drowning Prevention Week campaign.
All of ABTA’s updated health and safety advice can be found at abta.com/tips-and-advice/staying-safe-on-holiday, which covers a range of topics including swim safety, balcony safety, quad bikes, safety and security while abroad, and specific guidance for young holidaymakers.
About ABTA
ABTA is a trade association for UK travel agents, tour operators and the wider travel industry. We’re the largest travel trade body, with over 3,900 travel brands in membership who have a combined pre-pandemic annual UK turnover of £40 billion. We work closely with our members to help raise and maintain standards and build a more sustainable travel industry, and provide travellers with advice, guidance and support.
Our members sign up to a code of conduct and commit to agreed service standards and fair trading. When you need clear travel information, and accurate and impartial advice relating to your trip, we’re here for you. We’ll help you understand your level of financial protection, and what to do next, in the unlikely event that an ABTA member goes out of business. So, whatever happens, when you book with an ABTA member, reliable advice comes as standard. This means that booking with our members brings peace of mind. Together with our members, we help you travel with confidence. www.abta.com
About the Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK)
Since 1891, the Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK) have been sharing our expertise in water safety, lifesaving and lifeguarding to educate everyone to enjoy water safely.
RLSS UK is the leading provider of lifesaving and lifeguarding training, and water safety education in the UK and Ireland.
On average, 312 people accidentally lose their life to drowning each year on average in the UK and Ireland and the RLSS UK aims to prevent drowning through high-quality water safety education.
The RLSS UK (then the Life Saving Society) was formed in 1891. In 1904, as there was great support for the organisation from the Royal Family, the society was granted permission to use the Royal title and became the Royal Life Saving Society.
1,250,000+ children were educated using our free educational resources during Drowning Prevention Week 2022. Drowning Prevention Week is the national campaign run by the Royal Life Saving Society UK to cut down the number of accidental drownings that occur each year and support families affected by drowning. The next campaign will run from 17-24 June 2023.