The Classroom as a Lifesaving Space
How Water Safety Ireland turned every classroom in Ireland into a place where children learn to stay alive near water
Roger Sweeney | Water Safety Ireland | ILSE Best Practice Seminar | 25 April 2026
The Challenge
Not Enough Pools — A National Problem
Ireland has approximately 4 million people and fewer than 100 public swimming pools. The majority of primary schools have no access to an affordable, nearby pool. Traditional water safety education — delivered in the water — simply cannot reach every child in the country.
The Pool Barrier
  • Fewer than 100 public pools for 4 million people
  • Most primary schools have no pool access
  • Cost and transport make pool visits prohibitive for many schools
  • Rural and disadvantaged communities most affected
  • Two-thirds of drownings involve people who had no intention of entering water (WSI, 2025)
WSI's Response
Water Safety Ireland recognised that waiting for pool infrastructure to catch up was not an option. Children were drowning. The solution was to reimagine the classroom itself — to bring the attitudes, behaviours and skills of water safety into every school, regardless of whether a pool was nearby.

If we cannot bring every child to the water, we must bring water safety to every child — through the classroom door.
The Pathway
WSI's Age-by-Age Lifesaving Pathway
From birth to Junior Certificate — water safety education at every stage of a child's school life. No pool required at any stage.
Birth–6 yrs
Early Learning Centres — role play, messy play & storytelling
Ages 4–12
Primary Schools — classroom-based water safety on the PE & Wellbeing curriculum
Ages 4–12
Primary Schools — pool-based aquatics where access allows
Ages 12–15
Junior Cycle Secondary Schools — mandatory PE curriculum, PE hall only

Together, these programmes create an unbroken chain of water safety education from the earliest years through to secondary school.
Programme 1
🧸 Hold Hands — Early Learning Centres
Birth to 6 Years | www.holdhands.ie
Hold Hands is Water Safety Ireland's water safety programme for Early Learning Centres (ELCs), launched in 2021. At its heart is a beautifully simple idea: children should always hold an adult's hand near water. By instilling this one behaviour, lives are saved. The programme uses role play, messy play and storytelling so that young children absorb water safety basics in the protective, familiar environment of their Early Learning Centre.
How It Works
  • Illustrated storyboards covering water safety at home, on farms, at beaches, rivers, lakes and on holidays
  • Digital storyboards displayable on whiteboards for whole-class engagement
  • Lesson plans for use in the classroom or at home
  • In-person workshops delivered by WSI's Education Team on request
  • Designed for children from birth to 6 years
Curriculum Alignment
Hold Hands resources are designed to align with the two national frameworks that all Early Learning Centres in Ireland must follow:
Aistear (2024)
Ireland's national curriculum framework for children from birth to six years. Updated in 2024, it promotes play-based, inclusive learning through four themes: Wellbeing, Identity & Belonging, Communicating, and Exploring & Thinking.
Síolta
The National Quality Framework for Early Childhood Education, setting standards for quality practice across all early childhood settings in Ireland.
Programme 2
🏫 PAWS — Primary Aquatics Water Safety
Primary Schools | Ages 4–12 | www.teachpaws.ie
PAWS is Water Safety Ireland's primary school water safety programme. It sits within the Aquatics strand of the Primary School PE curriculum and has two distinct components: a pool-based programme and a classroom-based "Land PAWS" programme. Land PAWS is also a proud partner of the Active School Flag initiative, supported by Healthy Ireland.
🏊 PAWS in the Pool
The pool-based component delivers hands-on aquatic skills. However, because PAWS sits only within the Aquatics strand — a small section of the overall curriculum — many schools without easy, affordable pool access tend to skip it entirely.
  • Nationally recognised PAWS certificates awarded on completion
  • 13,194 PAWS pool certificates issued in 2025
  • Recommended by the Department of Education
  • Barrier: requires pool access — not available to all schools
🏫 Land PAWS — The Classroom Solution
Land PAWS brings the essential attitudes and behaviours of water safety into the classroom — no pool required. It sits within the Physical Education and Wellbeing strand of the Active School Flag programme, making it accessible to every school in Ireland.
  • 46,784 Land PAWS certificates issued in 2025
  • Teaches hazard recognition, rescue basics ("Shout, Reach, Throw — Don't Go"), and safe behaviour near water
  • Complements PE and SPHE curricula
  • Delivered by WSI Education Officers or by trained teachers
  • No pool, no transport, no cost barrier
13,194
Pool PAWS Certificates
Awarded in 2025
46,784
Land PAWS Certificates
Awarded in 2025 — 3.5× more than pool
PAWS & Active Flag
Land PAWS, Active Flag & Healthy Ireland
Land PAWS does not sit within the formal school curriculum — but that is precisely what makes it so powerful. It lives within the Physical Education and Wellbeing strand of the Active School Flag (ASF) programme, a Department of Education initiative supported by Healthy Ireland and the National Physical Activity Plan.
What is Active School Flag?
Active School Flag is a non-competitive initiative that recognises primary and post-primary schools that focus on physical activity and physical education. It uses a whole-school approach, anchored by student voice and student leadership, to create physically educated and physically active school communities.
  • Supported by Healthy Ireland and the Department of Education
  • Encourages schools to integrate physical activity into teaching and learning
  • Land PAWS is listed as a recommended resource on the Active School Flag website
  • Gives schools a structured, recognised framework for delivering water safety
Why This Matters for Water Safety
Because Land PAWS sits within the Active School Flag framework — rather than the narrow Aquatics strand of the curriculum — it reaches far more schools. Teachers who might never have considered pool-based water safety are actively encouraged to deliver Land PAWS as part of their school's Active Flag journey.
  • Removes the pool barrier entirely
  • Positions water safety as part of everyday physical activity
  • Accessible to every school, urban or rural
  • Supported by Healthy Ireland's national health promotion agenda

Active Flag gave Land PAWS a home in every school in Ireland — not just those lucky enough to have a pool nearby.
Programme 3
🎓 GetWISE — Junior Cycle Secondary Schools
Water Insights Safety Education | Ages 12–15 | www.getwise.ie
GetWISE is Water Safety Ireland's land-based water safety programme for Junior Cycle secondary school students. It is the most significant achievement in WSI's classroom strategy: GetWISE is embedded in Ireland's mandatory Junior Cycle Physical Education curriculum, meaning every secondary school student in Ireland must engage with water safety — with no pool required.
On the Mandatory Curriculum
GetWISE aligns with the Junior Cycle PE Specification (NCCA), Strand 2: Participation, Learning Outcome 2.9 — which requires students to "demonstrate an understanding of personal survival and water safety considerations." This falls under the wider Aquatics activity area, encouraging students to make informed decisions on, in, or near water.
  • Part of the Junior Cycle PE Specification — mandatory for all students
  • Strand 2: Participation | Learning Outcome 2.9 (LO 2.9)
  • Delivered in a PE hall — no pool, no barrier
  • Developed in partnership with OIDE, the Irish Government's support service for teachers (oide.ie)
  • OIDE provides Continuous Professional Development (CPD) for all PE teachers, including GetWISE delivery
Skills Taught in GetWISE
GetWISE uses fundamental movements and simulated rescue scenarios to make water safety physical, engaging and memorable — just as play is central to Hold Hands and Land PAWS.
  • 🔴 How to throw a ringbuoy (every school can purchase ringbuoys through a special school funding programme)
  • 🤝 Non-contact rescue skills
  • 👁️ Spotting someone in trouble and making voice contact
  • 🏖️ Beach flags race
  • ⭐ Float Like A Star
  • 🌊 Self-rescue techniques
  • 🗺️ Risk assessment in different water environments

Because GetWISE is on the mandatory curriculum, WSI staff deliver CPD to every PE teacher in Ireland through OIDE — ensuring consistent, quality delivery nationwide.
The Strategy
How WSI Got Water Safety onto the Curriculum
Getting water safety embedded into Ireland's mandatory school curriculum required more than good resources — it required political engagement, strategic thinking, and a willingness to look beyond the traditional pool-based model. Here is how WSI did it.
1
The Problem
PAWS sat only in the Aquatics strand — a small, optional section of the primary curriculum. Schools without pool access simply skipped it. Water safety was not reaching the children who needed it most.
2
The Insight
WSI looked at water safety through the eyes of the Physical Education curriculum rather than the Aquatics strand. The question became: how do we make water safety unavoidable for every school?
3
The Action
WSI met with the Minister of State at the Department of Sport and associated Government officials. The case was made: water safety skills can be taught in a PE hall. The result was the introduction of water safety training into the PE strand of the secondary school curriculum.
4
The Result
Water safety became Learning Outcome 2.9 of the Junior Cycle PE Specification — mandatory for every secondary school student in Ireland. WSI staff now deliver CPD to PE teachers nationwide through OIDE.

The lesson: when the pool door is closed, find another door. WSI found it in the PE hall — and then made it mandatory.
The OIDE Partnership
Teacher Training at Scale — The OIDE Partnership
A programme is only as good as the teachers who deliver it. WSI recognised early that embedding water safety in the curriculum was only half the battle — teachers needed to feel confident and competent to deliver it. The partnership with OIDE made this possible at national scale.
What is OIDE?
OIDE is the Irish Government's support service for teachers and school leaders, funded by the Department of Education. It provides Continuous Professional Development (CPD) across all subject areas for teachers at every level of the Irish school system.
  • Funded by the Department of Education
  • Provides CPD for all Physical Education teachers in Ireland
  • Supports teachers in delivering the Junior Cycle PE Specification
  • Operates nationally across all secondary schools
WSI's Role in CPD Delivery
As part of the OIDE CPD programme for PE teachers, Water Safety Ireland staff deliver training on how to teach the GetWISE component of the Junior Cycle PE curriculum. This means:
  • Every PE teacher in Ireland receives training on water safety delivery
  • WSI experts — not just generic trainers — deliver the CPD
  • Teachers learn to use the PE hall as a water safety classroom
  • Consistent, high-quality delivery is assured nationwide
  • The CPD is ongoing, reaching new teachers every year

OIDE turned WSI's expertise into a national teacher training pipeline — ensuring GetWISE is delivered with confidence in every secondary school in Ireland.
Key Principles
What Makes WSI's Classroom Model Work
Three core principles underpin every WSI classroom programme — from Hold Hands for toddlers to GetWISE for teenagers. These principles are what make the model scalable, sustainable and effective.
Play is the Pedagogy
From messy play in Early Learning Centres to beach flag races in secondary school PE halls, every WSI programme uses play as its primary teaching method. Play builds genuine attitudes and behaviours — not just knowledge.
Curriculum is the Vehicle
WSI doesn't ask schools to add something extra. Every programme is designed to sit within an existing curriculum framework — Aistear, Active School Flag, or the Junior Cycle PE Specification. This removes the burden from teachers and ensures delivery.
No Pool Required
The defining feature of WSI's classroom model is that it works everywhere. A storyboard, a PE hall, a whiteboard — these are the only infrastructure needed. Every child in Ireland can be reached.
Aligned with National Frameworks
Aistear (ELC), Active School Flag (Primary), Junior Cycle PE Specification (Secondary) — WSI programmes are embedded in the frameworks teachers already use.
Supported by Government
From the Department of Education to Healthy Ireland to OIDE, WSI's classroom programmes have government backing at every level.
Delivered by Experts
WSI Education Officers deliver programmes directly and train teachers through OIDE CPD — ensuring quality and consistency nationwide.
The Results
Ireland's Classroom Model: Proven at Scale
In a single school year, Ireland demonstrated that classroom-based water safety education can reach tens of thousands of children — without a single pool. The numbers speak for themselves.
46,784
Land PAWS Certificates
Issued in 2025 — classroom-based primary school water safety
13,194
Pool PAWS Certificates
Issued in 2025 — pool-based primary school water safety
3.5×
More Classroom than Pool
Land PAWS reaches 3.5 times more children than pool-based PAWS
100%
Secondary School Reach
GetWISE is mandatory for all Junior Cycle students — every secondary school in Ireland
What the Numbers Tell Us
The gap between Land PAWS (46,784) and pool PAWS (13,194) certificates is not a failure of the pool programme — it is proof that the classroom model works. Land PAWS is reaching children who would never have received any water safety education at all. And GetWISE, as a mandatory curriculum component, ensures that every secondary school student in Ireland receives water safety training — regardless of where they live or whether their school has a pool.
Two-Thirds of Drownings Are Land-Based
WSI's Chief Executive has described it as "startling" — two-thirds of accidental drownings in Ireland involve people who had no intention of entering water. They fell in. They slipped. They were caught off guard. This is precisely why classroom-based water safety education matters: it teaches children to recognise hazards, stay alert, and know what to do — before they ever get near the water.
Source: Irish Times, May 2025 / Water Safety Ireland

The classroom is not a compromise. For the majority of Ireland's children, it is the only lifesaving space they will ever have access to.
About WSI
Water Safety Ireland — Who We Are
Water Safety Ireland is Ireland's national statutory body for water safety. For over 20 years, WSI has led national drowning-prevention programmes, public awareness campaigns, and education initiatives that have transformed how Ireland thinks about water safety.
Our Mission
To reduce drowning fatalities in Ireland through education, awareness, and the development of water safety skills across all ages and communities. WSI believes that every drowning is preventable — and that the classroom is one of the most powerful tools we have.
  • National statutory body for water safety in Ireland
  • Develops and delivers water safety education from birth to adulthood
  • Works with the Department of Education, Healthy Ireland, OIDE and schools nationwide
  • Trains and accredits lifeguards across Ireland
  • Manages ringbuoy networks at waterways nationwide
  • Runs national public awareness campaigns
Our Education Programmes
Hold Hands
Birth–6 years | Early Learning Centres | www.holdhands.ie
PAWS & Land PAWS
Ages 4–12 | Primary Schools | www.teachpaws.ie
GetWISE
Ages 12–15 | Junior Cycle Secondary Schools | www.getwise.ie

Together, Let's Bring Drownings Down.
The Classroom as a Lifesaving Space — Key Takeaways
Ireland's experience proves that water safety education does not require a swimming pool. It requires commitment, creativity, and curriculum integration. Here is what every delegate should leave this seminar knowing:
The Pool is Not the Only Classroom
WSI's three programmes — Hold Hands, Land PAWS and GetWISE — prove that water safety can be taught anywhere: an ELC, a primary classroom, a PE hall.
Play is the Key
From messy play for toddlers to beach flag races for teenagers, play-based learning is the thread that runs through every WSI programme. It works because children engage with it.
Curriculum Embedding is Everything
Voluntary programmes get ignored. Curriculum-embedded programmes get delivered. WSI's strategy of embedding water safety into Aistear, Active School Flag and the Junior Cycle PE Specification is what makes the model sustainable.
Political Will Unlocks Scale
WSI's engagement with the Minister of State and Government officials was the turning point for GetWISE. Advocacy at the highest level is what turned a good programme into a mandatory one.
The Numbers Prove It Works
46,784 Land PAWS certificates. 13,194 pool PAWS certificates. 100% of Junior Cycle students covered by GetWISE. The classroom model is not a compromise — it is the solution.

Roger Sweeney | Water Safety Ireland | roger@watersafety.ie | www.watersafety.ie