Parents: Safety starts with you!

Explore the 6 essentials for staying safer around the water.

Safety Fencing

Safety fences around pools are essential because they create a physical barrier that greatly reduces the risk of unsupervised access, especially for young children. A properly installed fence prevents children from reaching the water when adults are distracted, even for a moment.

Many fences also improve visibility by allowing caregivers to clearly see the pool area while keeping it securely enclosed. They offer added protection by including self closing and self latching gates that limit the chance of accidental entry. Safety fences are strongly recommended and often required in many communities to prevent preventable accidents from becoming fatal.

Learn the Safer 3

Water can be fun, exciting, and part of everyday family life, but it also comes with real risks. The Safer 3 is a powerful drowning prevention approach that helps parents turn awareness into action. By focusing on three key areas that work together, families can spot dangers early, build safer habits, and feel more confident around water. Guided by our friendly water safety characters, the Safer 3 shows kids and parents that safety is not one rule, it is a system.

Safer Water

Safer Water means identifying the risks. This can be any body of water (bathtubs, pools, spas, lakes, rivers or oceans) whether you are swimming in it or not. This element includes learning how to reduce those risks. For example installing barriers such as isolation fencing around a backyard pool would reduce the risk of unauthorized access to the pool by young children.

Safer Kids

Safer Kids covers the behaviors necessary for both kids and parents to prevent drowning. No one is ever “drown-proof”. That is a dangerous misconception. The Safer Kids water safety tips include constant responsible supervision by adults, along with swimming skills attained through ongoing qualified instruction for kids.

Safer Response

Safer Response is how to respond in an emergency if a drowning indeed happens. Safer Response covers emergency response techniques and emergency action plans as well as what *not* to do, preventing a drowning event from becoming a double drowning. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and first aid are essential skills for parents, as well as having a phone available at all times.

FREE tools you can use at home.

You can access a variety of fun and useful freebies. These include checklists, coloring pages, activity sheets, word searches, and simple crafts that make it easy to share water safety with your kids in a fun and memorable way.

Whether you are just getting started or looking to build on what your family already knows, these tools are here to support you every step of the way. Explore free resources created for parents, learn practical water safety and drowning prevention tips, and find easy ways to reinforce safe habits at home. Everything on this page is designed to help you protect your child and build confidence around water.

Recommended safety products.

Explore a curated selection of SDN approved books and water safety gear available from trusted partner websites. These carefully chosen resources include educational books, swim safety tools, and kid friendly gear that reinforce essential water safety lessons at home and on the go. Each recommendation is designed to support learning beyond the pool and help families build confident, safety smart swimmers through everyday activities and play.