The founder of water safety education program Kids Alive Do the Five said the move would deny children the opportunity to develop a life-saving skill.
“Learning to swim is one of the top drowning prevention methods families have at their disposal and it truly saddens me to think what the impact of closing seven pools in this region will have on the future,” Mr Lawrence said.
“I have heard these closures would mean the nearest facility would be 40 minutes away, so for many families and schools this will isolate them from providing access to learn to swim for children.
“The Royal Life Saving National Drowning Report shows rivers and creeks were the top locations for drownings (26 per cent) and this region is full of them!
“The irrigation channels are also a risk that can’t be ignored as even a strong swimmer would have difficulty getting out of them.
“I implore the council to reconsider the closures with the view that pools bring immeasurable value and of course safety into a community.”
Independent candidate for Nicholls Rob Priestly echoed Mr Lawrence’s stance on the situation and urged the community to reach out to their local council to dispute the pool closure plans.
“I understand councils are under financial pressure because they don’t get enough support from the state and federal government but putting families at risk to reduce costs is not the right way forward,” he said.
“I hope it has been a simple misdirection of ideas and that councillors will see fit to reject the proposal.
“The community doesn’t want a pause on this issue only to have it arise again in a few years, but rather a commitment to working on a plan to deliver swimming for the whole community.
“This will involve campaigning for more investment in regional infrastructure from the state and federal government but it starts with locals passionate about a cause.
“Having support from a trail-blazing water safety expert like Laurie Lawrence on this issue shows how serious the situation is and he joined me yesterday to discuss the situation and how pools play such a vital role in kids’ safety and overall health.
“We want to be a safe swimming nation but it starts locally by learning to swim.
“The second step in the Kids Alive Do the Five program is ‘Teach your kids to swim it’s great’ but as Laurie says it’s impossible to do the five safety steps if there is no pool to access.”
