Every child deserves to be safe in the water
Every summer, families are shattered by preventable water tragedies. Every child deserves to come home safely from a swim.
Across Aotearoa, children head to beaches, rivers, and pools – places of joy, discovery, and connection to wai. Yet too many school children are unprepared for when things go wrong. Drowning and water-related injuries remain preventable tragedies.
Water Skills for Life recognises no child should be at risk simply because they don’t know how to float, recognise hazards, or call for help. Confidence in the water should be as natural as confidence on land — and safety should never come at the cost of enjoyment.
Our evidence-based, age-appropriate curriculum equips students from Year 0 to Year8 with survival skills that go beyond swim-school. Because enjoying water is not enough – being safe in water saves lives.
"When my daughter got caught in a current, she floated and signalled for help because she knew what to do. That was thanks to her water survival lessons.”
— Parent
"I used to think learn to swim was enough. But WSFL opened our eyes – the difference between swimming and surviving.”
— Teacher
At Water Skills for Life, we take our responsibility to every child, whānau, and community seriously. Every lesson, every module, every competency is designed to ensure that children leave school not only enjoying the water but truly prepared to survive when the unexpected happens.
We are committed to:
Safety first:
Providing evidence-based, age-appropriate skills that save lives.
Accessibility and inclusion:
Ensuring every child, no matter their background or location, has the chance to gain these essential skills.
Accountability and quality:
Aligning our curriculum with national standards and continuously improving based on real-world feedback and outcomes.
We hold ourselves to the highest standards — so that families, schools, and communities can trust that learning with Water Skills for Life truly makes a difference.