Bidyadanga children all smiles after Term 4 lessons

78 children from the La Grange Community School were thrilled to complete swimming lessons during Term Four last year, through our delivery of the Department of Education’s Interm Swimming program at the Bidyadanga Remote Aboriginal Swimming Pool. The program is part of a service agreement between Royal Life Saving WA and the Department of Education to ensure children in remote communities have access to learn to stay safe around the water.

La Grange Remote Community School is part of the Bidyadanga Aboriginal Community in WA’s Kimberley region, 180km south of Broome. It is the largest Remote Community School in the state, with around 200 students from Pre-Kindy to Year 12.

The Bidyadanga pool is part of the Remote Aboriginal Swimming Pools Project. The pool is managed by Bernie Egan, who has been a Remote Pool Manager with Royal Life Saving WA for over 11 years. Bernie also teaches the swimming lessons at the facility and enjoys seeing the progress made each season by her young charges.

She also advocates the pool’s significant health and social benefits for the community, with many of the locals using the pool as a bit of a ‘hub’ to gather at and hang out. 

Ensuring each new wave of children in the community have the swimming and water safety skills to safely enjoy the pool and its community benefits is an essential part of Bernie’s work.

Children from Kindergarten to Year 6 participated in the Term 4 in-term swimming program, with Bernie teaching various levels and abilities ranging from Stage 2 to Stage 7.

The lessons ran over six weeks during the term and were made possible thanks to a partnership between Royal Life Saving WA and the WA Department of Education, which provides the ‘Regional & Remote In-term Swimming Program’ to remote communities throughout the state.

You can learn more about the Remote Aboriginal Swimming Pools Project at the link below.