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[Pool Safety Laws] [European Pool Safety Laws] [Communal Pools - the Law] [Piscinas Comunitarias - la Ley] [Private Pools - The Law]
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The Child Safety
Action Plan
Child Safety Report
Cards
'Eurosafe'
Drowning Information
Pool Safety Laws in
France
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Are there any European-wide swimming pool
safety laws?
Contrary to many rumours, there are in fact NO
enforceable EU wide swimming pool safety laws. There
are, however, European directives and guidelines in
place and it will be these guidelines which will
form the basis of any EU wide laws which are passed
by the European Parliament.
The guidelines are based upon the
legal situation in
France, which is the only European country which
enforces nationwide pool safety laws and imposes
heavy fines
of up to
€45,000
for non-compliance for Private pools and up to
€225,000
for Communal pools.
The European Parliament have
already passed advisory laws governing pool safety
products and procedures relating to both public and
private swimming pools. i.e. there
are local Spanish pool safety laws and EU pool safety
directives & guidelines.
The fact that Spanish Law
governing pool fencing around
communal pools is now
starting to be enforced, it is highly likely that
similar laws will soon be put in place with regard to
private pools.
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The Spanish Ministry of Health's Commitment to
place more focus on WATER SAFETY
The European
Child Safety Action Plan and theksubsequent
release of the results in the form of
Child Safety
Report Cards for 24 European countries, Spain
included, was followed by a conference on injury
prevention, focusing on child injury prevention.
Hosted in Madrid by the
Spanish Ministry of Health and Social Policies
on May 25, 2009, the discussions were opened by Ildefonso Hernández Aguado Director General of Public Health,
with key notes provided by Francesca
Racioppi of the WHO Regional Office for Europe,
Violence and Injury Prevention and Joanne Vincenten,
Director of the European Child Safety Alliance.
In
the closing remarks of the conference, the Ministry
of Health and Social Policies made a specific
commitment to place more focus on the prevention of
child injuries and
particularly in the area of water safety.
For further information on the proposals discussed at this
conference, please use the link to
'Private Pools - The
Law'. |
The Child Safety
Action Plan
The European Commission is working in partnership
with the European Child Safety Alliance of Eurosafe,
the
Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL), UNICEF, the
Universities of Keele and the West of England,
WHO-Europe, and partners in 26 countries including
Sociedad Española de Cirugía Infantil in Spain on
the Child Safety Action Plan (CSAP) project.
This is a large
scale initiative whose purpose is to use
standardised tools and processes to facilitate
development of national government endorsed action
plans to enhance child and adolescent safety in
Europe.
 Click
to see more information on the CSAP
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Child Safety Report Cards
Some important results of this project, released in
May, 2009 are 'Child Safety Report Cards' for 24
countries and the Europe Summary Report Card which
score countries on their level of adoption,
implementation and enforcement of over 100 proven,
effective child injury prevention strategies – good
practices known to save children’s lives. The good
practice policies relate to road traffic accidents,
drowning, falls,
poisoning, burns, choking and supports, such as
leadership, data infrastructure and professional
capacity, necessary to combat child injury.
Click
to see the results for Spain in the Child Safety
Report Cards
Back to Top
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Information
on drownings from 'Eurosafe'
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Every year there are approximately
236,000 injuries
in swimming pools within the European Union. Most
of the injuries are to children and teens.
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In the United Kingdom for example,
more children
died in pools abroad while on vacation than at
home in the United Kingdom, and
more than half
of those who drowned could in fact swim.
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In Portugal, an average of 28 children drown every year.
Although Portugal has over 150 kilometres of coastal
waters, 83% of
child drownings occur in unprotected swimming pools,
both private and hotel.
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Approximately 18% of swimming pool accidents in Europe
occur on or around waterslides, and 15% by jumping from
the pool edge.
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24% of waterslide injuries are caused by riders
colliding with each other.
Click
to see Eurosafe's recommendations for the reduction in
childhood drownings.
Back to Top
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In Spain a series of actions targeting drowning and
water safety are being implemented, including the
adoption by the Ministry of Health of the Eurosafe
'Water Safety Guidelines for Recreation Service
Providers'.
Eurosafe
and the European Child Safety
Alliance: Important information about drowning
and Water Safety
The Conference on Child Injury Prevention held in
Madrid in May 2009
EUROSAFE
drowning statistics and recommendations for
prevention
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Pool Safety Laws in
France
France has the largest private swimming pool market in
Europe, with over one million pools. It also has the world's highest rate of infant death by
drowning in swimming pools - each year between 15 and 20
under 5's are killed in swimming pool accidents.
Statistics like this, coupled with a child drowning in
his own family, pushed the then French prime Minister to
introduce pool safety legislation aimed at reducing the
number of tragedies.
In 2002, the
French parliament passed the “Raffarin Law” imposing the
use of security systems around swimming pools.
By 1 January 2004, in-ground pools on every property
rented out to holidaymakers had to have a government
approved security system installed.
This law states that all pool owners must ensure that
they are using at least one of the approved safety
devices. Any safety equipment used must comply with the
French standards association
AFNOR. You can
choose between one of the four following safety
systems:-
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Enclosures/Fences
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Reinforced pool covers
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Drowning alarms
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Pool shelters
All of these measures provide an effective layer of
protection – the key to preventing a tragedy. It is
known that in France, childhood deaths due to drowning
had decreased from 25 in 2003 to 17 in 2004 and that the
recommendations.
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Peace of Mind.
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