SEAL Pool Safety Programs : Ipswich City Council

SEAL Pool Safety Program

The SEAL Pool Safety Program was initiated in January 2021 in response to child drowning statistics, which showed pool drownings as being a leading cause of death for children under the age of five in Queensland.

SEAL is designed to encourage active adult and child participation in programs such as learning to swim, supervision, CPR and pool fence compliance, in order to educate the community to the benefits of water safety and help save lives.

A child or toddler can drown within 20 seconds, in as little as 50mm of water. A child drowning is silent.

What is SEAL?

SEAL comprises four key water safety actions – supervise around the pool; enclose the pool with a fence; actively check the pool gate and fence; and learn CPR and how to swim.

S - Supervise around the pool

Supervision means continually watching your child. Be familiar with your child’s swimming ability and always keep within arm’s reach of them when in or around the water.

Ensure you have everything you need before swimming.

Put away distractions and be prepared to get in the water in an emergency.

E - Enclose the pool with a fence

The Queensland Building Act 1975 defines a Regulated Pool as: -

231B What is a regulated pool

(1) A regulated pool—

(a) is a swimming pool situated on regulated land; and
(b) includes the barriers for the pool

(2) The barriers for the pool include any of the following—

(a) the fencing for the pool;
(b) the walls of a building enclosing the pool;
(c) another form of barrier mentioned or provided for in the pool safety standard

If your private pool or spa meet any of the following criteria, you are required by law to gain building approval and to enclose it with a fence:

capable of holding water to a depth greater than 300mm
has the capacity to hold over 2,000 litres of water
has a filtration system.

All regulated swimming pools and spas in Queensland must be registered with the Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC)

Find more information about fencing requirements at Swimming Pools, Spas and Safety Barriers or read more about Queensland’s current pool and spa safety standards in this brochure.

A - Actively check the pool gate and fence

Regularly check your pool gate and fence are safe.

YouTube: SEAL Pool Compliance

Top things to check for to ensure your pool/spa is safe all year:

Does the gate open outwards away from the pool or spa enclosure?
Does the gate self-close and self-latch and can be shut from any open position? Replace immediately if it no longer self-latches.
Is the pool/spa gate closed at all times?
Ensure that all entry points to a pool/spa is only through an approved pool/spa gate.
Ensure the gate latch is a minimum of 1,500mm when measured from the ground to the bottom of the latch.
Ensure there is no rust visible on the gate or fence.
Ensure there is a current CPR sign displayed clearly to anyone near the pool/spa.
Ensure any building with windows and doors that open more than 100mm directly into a pool/spa enclosure has a permanently fixed security screen fitted, so children are not able to access the pool/spa area.
Ensure there are no gaps greater than 100mm anywhere in the pool/spa fence.
Ensure the effective pool/spa fence height is not less than 1,200mm high from above the ground and includes a continuous non-climbable zone around the entire pool/spa fence (QDC MP3.4 Swimming Pool Barriers)
Ensure the gate hinges are 900mm apart, from the top of the top hinge to the top of the lower hinge.
Ensure all objects inside the pool/spa fence that may provide footholds are moved a minimum of 300mm away from the fence.
Ensure there are no climbable objects such as furniture, trees, branches, shrubs, plants, pool toys or any other obstructions around the fence that a child can use to climb over the fence or open the gate to gain access to the pool/spa area.
Is your pool/spa registered with the Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC)?

Find more information about fencing requirements at Swimming Pools, Spas and Safety Barriers or read more about Queensland’s current pool and spa safety standards in this brochure.

You can also download the Summer is Coming checklist to make sure your pool/spa area is ready ahead of the warmer months.

L - Learn CPR and to Swim

Swimming is an important life skill which builds water confidence and is the first step when it comes to teaching your child water awareness. A child that experiences an immersion and survives may suffer from long term medical issues. The earlier your child is introduced to water, the more likely they will develop water safety and swimming skills which are vital lifesaving skills.

Swimming lessons, as well as water safety skills, are available to children to help build assurance and encourage them to be confident in the water.

It is also a requirement that you prominently display a CPR sign near your pool/spa. For up to date information about CPR signage requirements, see Swimming Pools, Spas and Safety Barriers.

A child is four times more likely to survive a near drowning if parents/guardians or bystanders know CPR and it is performed immediately.

Ipswich City Council offers free learn to swim programs throughout the year for adults aged 18+ years and children aged 6 months to 5 years, along with free CPR Awareness sessions for adults and children.

A child is four times more likely to survive a near drowning if parents/guardians or bystanders know CPR and it is performed immediately. See the Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) Fact Sheet (PDF, 75.6 KB) for a few steps that need to be followed.

Dangers pertaining to electrical work in and around a pool or spa can be found in the Equipotential Bonding Around a Swimming Pool Fact Sheet (PDF, 115.0 KB).

SEAL Activities for Kids

Other Pool Safety Resources

More information

For more information, please contact our friendly Pool Safety Team by phoning (07) 3810 6120 or emailing poolsprogram@ipswich.qld.gov.au.

SEAL Pool Safety Programs