Guest Articles

For many families, the beach is where weekends are spent, friendships are made and children develop a love of the ocean. But as we return to the water, it is worth asking whether we are giving our children the skills they need not simply to enjoy it, but to understand it, because swimming ability and water safety are not the same thing.

A child can be a confident swimmer and still be vulnerable in open water. Currents can change. Conditions can deteriorate. Cold water, waves, fatigue and unfamiliar surroundings can affect even strong swimmers - and when something goes wrong, panic can quickly replace confidence.

The ability to swim is an important foundation, but true water confidence comes from understanding your environment, recognising risk, knowing your limits and having the knowledge to respond appropriately when circumstances change.

Teaching children to understand the water

This is why we believe water safety should be treated as a life skill, rather than something we talk about only when the holidays roll around, or after an accident occurs.

In Dubai, we are fortunate to have access to beautiful beaches, swimming pools and a huge range of water-based activities. Our climate makes being around water part of everyday life for much of the year. That creates an enormous opportunity to teach children from an early age how to enjoy the water responsibly.

It can start with very simple things.

Do they know what the beach flags mean? Do they know where the lifeguard is? Do they understand why they should never swim alone? Can they recognise when conditions have changed? Do they know what to do if they become tired or caught in a current?

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, do they know what to do if they see someone else in trouble?

These are skills that can be practised and reinforced until they become second nature.

If caught in a current, for example, the instinct may be to fight against it. Instead, the priority is to stay calm, float on your back if necessary to regain control of breathing, and, where appropriate, move parallel to the shoreline to escape the strongest part of the current before making your way back towards safety.

If someone becomes tired or overwhelmed, knowing how to turn them onto their back and float can buy valuable time. If another person is struggling, understanding that entering the water to attempt an untrained rescue can put both people in danger is equally important. Alerting a lifeguard, calling for help and throwing something that floats can be much safer.

None of these lessons require children to be afraid of the water - quite the opposite. The more we understand the water, the more confidently and safely we can enjoy it.

From water safety to life skills

This is where surf lifesaving has such a valuable role to play.

When people hear ‘surf lifesaving’, they may picture elite competitors racing along an Australian beach. Competition is certainly part of the sport, but it is only one small part of what surf lifesaving offers.

At Ocean Warriors, sessions combine water safety education with fitness, teamwork, CPR, first aid, rescue techniques and practical beach skills. Children might be paddling a rescue board, learning to use a surf ski, taking part in a beach relay, practising CPR or working through a rescue scenario.

They are learning while moving, playing and working together - and that matters because the benefits extend far beyond the beach.

A child helping a teammate develops communication. Taking responsibility for equipment builds accountability. Supporting a younger member develops leadership and empathy. Working through a challenging scenario builds resilience and the ability to make decisions under pressure.

These are not just useful qualities for a day at the beach. They are qualities that children carry into school, university, work and adult life.

For older participants, the pathway can go even further. Through our internationally recognised Surf Life Saving GB and Royal Life Saving Society UK qualifications, young people can work towards practical lifesaving credentials that can support future volunteering, employment and progression into lifeguarding. There are also opportunities to support The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.

What starts as a Saturday morning on the beach can therefore become something much bigger: A pathway towards qualifications, responsibility, leadership and genuine community contribution.

We should teach children how to help, not just how to stay safe

One of the most powerful things we can give a young person is the confidence to know what to do when something goes wrong.

That doesn’t mean expecting children to become rescuers. In fact, one of the most important lessons is knowing when not to enter the water.

It means teaching them how to recognise danger, raise the alarm, find a lifeguard, call emergency services and understand basic emergency response. It means giving them enough knowledge to remain calm rather than panic.

It also means ensuring that adults have those skills.

Every parent hopes they will never need to perform CPR. Every employer hopes they will never have to respond to a medical emergency at work. But knowing what to do while professional help is on its way can make an extraordinary difference.

First aid, CPR and water safety are therefore not niche skills for lifeguards. They are practical life skills that have value in families, schools, workplaces and communities.

A responsibility we can share

There is also a wider community opportunity here in the UAE.

Water safety shouldn’t sit solely with parents, lifeguards or swimming instructors. Schools, employers, community organisations, hotels, sports clubs and businesses all have a role to play in creating a culture where safety around water is understood and taken seriously.

For a city like Dubai, where international families come and go and many residents spend their summers travelling, this is particularly important.

Water safety habits developed in Dubai can travel with families wherever they go. Understanding that a beach in another country may have different flags, different lifeguard provision or different risks is itself an important lesson.

The same principle applies when we return home. A calm-looking lake, river or unfamiliar beach can present very different risks from a supervised swimming pool.

The message is simple: before entering the water, stop, look, understand the environment and know your limits.

Building a safer, more confident community

At Ocean Warriors, our mission is to help make the Dubai community safer around the water while inspiring children and adults to develop a genuine love of the ocean.

We are proud to be the first Surf Lifesaving GB club established outside the UK and the only Royal Life Saving Society UK accredited club in the UAE. But our greatest measure of success isn’t simply how many qualifications we award or how many children learn a new rescue technique.

It is seeing a child who once lacked confidence become comfortable in the ocean. Watching a young person learn to recognise a hazard before it becomes a problem. Seeing older members take responsibility for younger children. Knowing that someone who has trained with us understands how to call for help, how to respond in an emergency or how to help someone safely without putting themselves at risk.

As Dubai’s outdoor season begins again, we have an opportunity to make water safety part of our children’s everyday lives - just as naturally as we teach them about road safety, fire safety and looking after themselves and others.

Because ultimately, water safety isn’t about teaching children to be afraid of the water. It’s about giving them the knowledge, confidence and respect to enjoy it for life.

The beach is waiting. Let’s make sure our children are ready for it.

Author: Paul Stokes is Founder & Head Coach of Ocean Warriors Lifesaving Club, the first Surf Lifesaving GB club outside the UK and the only Royal Life Saving Society UK accredited club in the UAE.