Watch Around Water

Children under 5 years:

• 0-4 years must wear a PINK wristband
• must be accompanied into the centre and the water by a responsible guardian over 16 years
• must stay within arm’s reach at all times, which includes children in prams
• a maximum of two under 5’s can be supervised by one guardian over 16 years
• guardian must wear the corresponding amount of PINK wristbands to match to their child/children at all times

Children under 10 years:

• 5-9 years must wear a YELLOW wristband
• must be accompanied into the centre by a responsible guardian over 16 years
• must be constantly and actively supervised
• guardians must position themselves to have a clear view of the child with no physical or structural barriers between them and the child / children, which includes the use of electronic devices e.g. mobile phones and laptops.
• a maximum of four under 10’s can be supervised by one guardian over 16 years. A maximum of two under 5’s may be included in this number
• guardian must wear the corresponding amount of YELLOW wristbands to match to their child/children at all times

Children 10 years old and over

• guardians must use their knowledge of an individual child’s swimming ability and general development to determine the level of accompaniment required

No. Watch Around Water is a nationwide program and is supported through research and coronial findings. Adhering to the Watch Around Water Policy is a condition of entry at MAC.

Outside of swimming lessons, there are many things that can happen unexpectedly and a child can quickly forget what they have learnt.

A young child may swim out into the middle of the pool, become exhausted and begin to panic in deep water. Without a guardian within arm’s reach in the water or actively supervising, they are not able to respond and reach the child quickly.

Other dangers such as a child losing their footing, unexpectedly getting out of their depth, fatigue or older children jumping into the water around a small child can all increase the risk of drowning, highlighting the need for guardians to still follow our policy.

Remember, not everything that occurs is within the child’s control; we want to eliminate as many external factors that can increase the risk of drowning. One blanket rule achieves this.

This term has been used for many years in relation to supervision of children under 5 when in or around water. It derives from the ability of a guardian being able to respond and react immediately should something happen to the child.

This still allows children to swim and play, but ensures that guardians are supervising appropriately and able to intervene if the young child gets into trouble.

Remember, it only takes 20 seconds for a child to drown.

No. It is important to remember that active supervision is about constantly watching and always having a clear view of your child.

It only takes 20 seconds for a child to drown, so an incident may easily occur during a short lapse in supervision.

Yes. The Watch Around Water Policy applies at all times within the facility, even during lessons.

While there is a Learn To Swim teacher providing a duty of care for your child, the responsibility and supervision of this child still falls to the guardian. However there are slight modifications to the policy as outlined on this page. 

Yes. If you are not required in the water with your under 5 during lessons (Preschoolers 1-3) you will resort to following the same supervision requirements as an under 10.

The guardian must be actively supervising at all times. While there is a Learn To Swim teacher providing a duty of care for your child, the responsibility and supervision of this child still falls to the guardian.

You must be available to provide assistance at any time.

No. The Watch Around Water Policy applies at all times. As a guardian you are unable to provide active supervision to your child if you are lap swimming.

While there is a Learn To Swim teacher providing a duty of care for your child, the responsibility and supervision of this child still falls to the guardian. You must be available to provide assistance at any time.

The same applies for attending any other part of the centre, such as the café, gym, using the sauna, spa, steam room and Warm Water Pool.

No. Watch Around Water ratios allow a maximum of four under 10 children at any given time to one guardian. Within this same ratio of four, up to two of these children are allowed to be under 5.

You as a sole guardian would only be able to supervise either two children under 5’s and two 5-9 year old children, or three 5-9 year old children but only one of the children under 5. In order to enter the aquatic area, another guardian would need to be present as this  exceeds the maximum supervision capacity of four children under 10.

As a condition of entry at MAC, the Watch Around Water policy applies at all times. If you are unable to comply with the policy at any time, staff reserve the right to remove any child from the water for their safety. This includes during swim lessons.

MAC reserve the review and action any membership as a part of any breaches to MAC's terms and conditions.