by Tim Nuttall and John Prince
A new coastal safety campaign inspired by the tragedy that claimed three lives on Withernsea’s central promenade in January has begun with a series of practical workshops for local schoolchildren.
Withernsea High School became the first school to take part, with students learning CPR, the recovery position, the “float to live” technique and how to use a throw line during two days of interactive sessions led by emergency services and trained volunteers.
The programme is the work of Withernsea town mayor Kristina Richardson, who has made coastal community safety the focus of her civic year, bringing together organisations already working to protect the public.
Craig Martin, assistant headteacher with responsibility for personal development and wellbeing, said: “Living in a coastal community, it is particularly important that our young people understand how to stay safe around the sea and what to do in an emergency.
“The sessions provided a valuable opportunity for students to develop practical, potentially lifesaving skills while learning directly from professionals with real-life experience.”
At Withernsea Primary School, pupils from years one to six received CPR training from Chloe Hart, who works for Shores Homecare and is a trainer with Yorkshire Ambulance Service First Aid Training.
Chloe visits the school every year to deliver first aid training, including CPR and the recovery position, with year six pupils also learning to recognise strokes and heart attacks.
Having also helped with the high school sessions, she said: “What they’ve brought from year six and the previous years makes me really happy that what I’m doing is paying off, and the training is making a real difference.”
Year three class teacher Lynne Feeney said: “It’s really important because we live at the seaside, so they’re at the beach throughout the year, and we’ve had so many tragedies every year.
“It’s practical. It gets them all involved. Everybody can take part, no matter what their ability.”
Speaking at the primary school, Kristina said she hoped children would take the safety messages home to their parents and carry the skills with them as they grew older.
“We don’t want this to be a one-off, but we want this to be the start of something we can build on for future years,” she said.
The campaign centres on the message ‘Stop, Think and Act’, encouraging people to consider the safest response before acting in an emergency.
Kristina said: “It is not just about raising awareness of what people can do but giving them the confidence to help if they ever find themselves in a situation where someone is in difficulty. It could be a friend, a family member or a complete stranger.”
Among the volunteers leading the workshops was HM Coastguard station officer Ann Bell, who explained the hierarchy of rescue: prioritising the safety of the rescuer, their team and bystanders before the casualty.
She said: “It’s not that the casualty is unimportant because they come last. It’s about making sure that everyone else stays safe. You don’t want to put anybody else in danger, because if you are in danger yourself, you cannot help anybody else.”
The sessions reinforced the importance of staying out of the water, calling 999 and asking for the Coastguard. Students were encouraged to help from the shore wherever possible and to tell others not to enter the water.
The October workshops were timed to reinforce safety messages ahead of half-term, with Halloween and Bonfire Night bringing additional risks as coastal conditions become increasingly challenging.
Kristina said much of the town’s coastal safety work takes place in summer, through events such as Blue Light Weekend, but she wanted those messages to remain prominent during the winter months.
The wider campaign will reach the community at a coastal safety event in Valley Gardens on Friday, November 6, combining safety messages with live music and a professional fireworks display.
More than 70 people, including Kristina and representatives from community groups and local businesses, are due to take part in a sponsored firewalk, raising money for throw lines on Withernsea seafront.
Kristina said: “We all play a vital role in safety, whether that’s through education or by coming together to enhance what we’ve already got. It becomes a whole community effort.”
The campaign also features recently installed signage at Pier Towers, with QR codes linking to further advice. Additional signs planned for Valley Gardens will use local history and familiar landmarks to engage residents and visitors.
Kristina hopes to extend the initiative to neighbouring communities, including Easington and Patrington, while sharing learning with other coastal towns such as Hornsea, where a 13-year-old boy drowned in August.
Her longer-term aim is to strengthen partnerships between emergency services, community organisations, schools and residents so lifesaving knowledge is shared throughout the year.
She said: “Sometimes we look for solutions that involve spending money, when actually we could achieve more by looking at what we’re already doing and how we could work together to get the message across more effectively. It doesn’t always have to cost money, or at least not a lot of money.”
