$100 swim vouchers scrapped with needy families, not ‘Mosman mums’, targeted in new pilot

Announced with great fanfare, a swim scheme has failed to prevent deaths. A new scheme will be introduced with vulnerable families rather than “Mosman mums” to benefit.

A $100 learn-to-swim voucher scheme targeting children has been axed with the Minns government claiming it was failing to curb drowning deaths.

Instead, The Saturday Telegraph can reveal the government will pilot a new $6 million program targeting both children and adults from culturally and linguistically diverse families and those from financially-disadvantaged backgrounds.

The First Lap voucher program had been providing $100 to every NSW child aged over three years not enrolled in school for swimming and water safety education before they start school.

Introduced in December 2021, it was one of more than 130 rebates, concessions and other NSW Government measures introduced by the Coalition to help reduce the cost of living.

However, the Minns government has argued that it has failed to curb drowning deaths with 128 fatalities in NSW recorded in the latest National Drowning Report 2023-24 – the highest figure in more than 30 years.

Royal Surf Life Saving NSW CEO Michael Ilinsky Source: Supplied.

The vouchers were also not being redeemed by families with children from families with “culturally and linguistically diverse” backgrounds despite the report showing more than one quarter of drowning death victims were born overseas.

A University of NSW evaluation of the program found just over 15.3 per cent of eligible children from culturally diverse backgrounds redeeming the vouchers.

It also found children from lower socio-economic backgrounds were also missing out, with their families redeeming the fewest vouchers compared with those from “wealthier” backgrounds.

The program also completely ignored adults as potential at-risk population in need of swimming training.

In the bush, where river drowning deaths are common, less than one quarter of regional children redeemed the vouchers.

The former Coalition government funded First Lap to June last year, with the Minns government putting further money towards it to keep it going for another year.

The new program will target those most in need with the government to partner with the swimming sector to deliver the lessons.

A source close to the program said the idea was to ensure “families near Penrith Beach” rather than “mums from Mosman” accessed the lessons.

Royal Life Saving NSW CEO Michael Ilinsky said more than 25 per cent of drowning victims this years were born overseas while 27 per cent of NSW fatal drownings were in disadvantaged areas.

About 90 per cent of victims were also adults, he said.

“We need to bridge the gap between emergency response and prevention and directing First Lap vouchers to where they will do the most good is going to do just that,” he said.

Sports Minister Steve Kamper said it was clear making learn-to-swim vouchers available for every child regardless of need was not preventing drowning deaths.

“What we found is that the program was not working,” he said.

“It was not reaching families from lower socio-economic families, or culturally and linguistically diverse communities. These communities are the exact communities that are at a greater risk of drowning.”

Sport NSW CEO Chris Hall said knowing how to swim was critical for personal safety “and also important in the development of our sports such as diving, rowing and sailing”.

Originally published as $100 swim vouchers scrapped with needy families, not ‘Mosman mums’, targeted in new pilot