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Water brings a great deal of pleasure, excitement and adventure to most children, but more than 5,000 drown each year in the WHO European region.
Drownings
In the UK in 2005, 57 children aged 0-16 died due to accidental drowning. On average we typically see one drowning a week.
Around 70% of the casualties were boys.*
Young children under 5 can drown in as little as 3cm of water, and most fatalities at this age occur in or near the home.
Children aged 6 to 14 are more likely to drown away from home, in rivers, lakes and the sea. These locations account for more than half of child drownings.
In these incidents, there is an even split between children who were intentionally in the water swimming or playing (mostly in lakes or in the sea), and those who fell in or were swept away (mostly by rivers).
*Source: RoSPA‘s drowning statistics
