Bridging the gap between pool and ocean swimming must be prioritised to reduce drowning deaths in ‘disadvantaged’ communities, according to water safety advocates.
A recent report found drowning rates were 2.2 times higher for those who resided in disadvantaged areas, and nearly triple in regional and remote communities compared to cities.
Experts say a combination of factors increase the risk of drowning, including people swimming at less crowded beaches where there are no lifeguards, because they believe it is as safe.
Water competency in rough ocean conditions was also an issue, with swimming skills generally in decline and impacted by low socio-economic conditions and a reduced focus on swimming skills in countries of birth of some migrant communities.
In Western Sydney, Swim Brothers and Her Swim School are working to address gaps in swimming skills through culturally sensitive pool-to-ocean swimming programs.
“There are a number of challenges for people from multicultural communities,” Swim Brothers and Her Swim School co-founder Omar Abu-Mahmoud told Central News.
“The first one is that they take increased risks – so a lot of us from multicultural communities like to swim in unpatrolled areas because we avoid the crowds.
“The second thing is that we overestimate our skills particularly as males and I think you would have seen that in the drowning statistics, that there’s an over representation in males when compared to females.
“We need to have more curated and specific programs that target those cohorts
“We need to create generational change by addressing the family unit: making sure the kids know how to swim, the parents, the uncles. When you have that change, hopefully you ensure the next generation is able to swim.”
Australia recorded its highest number of drowning deaths since records began in 1996 with 357 lives lost this year: a 27 per cent increase on the 10-year average, according to the National Drowning Report 2025.
The joint report by Royal Life Saving Australia and Surf Life Saving Australia said “our increasingly diverse population brings more complex community vulnerabilities”, but “localising water safety efforts” through community initiatives is crucial in combatting the surge in drowning deaths.
According to the report, men make up 81 per cent of drowning deaths over the past year. It also found participation in swimming lessons had declined due to the cost of living and because “schools often cannot provide the same level of instruction they once did”.
Last month 18-year old Riahne Louie Vasquez drowned on the NSW Central Coast after a sandbank at Soldiers Beach collapsed and created a rip that pulled him out to sea, while in the same week a man in his 50s drowned on the Gold Coast.
“If someone is interested in swimming, we don’t want finance to be the barrier to their participation. Regardless of if they can afford or not afford swim classes, we 100 per cent take everyone in,” says Abu-Mahmoud.
Swim Brothers was founded in 2020 by pharmacist Abu-Mahmoud and lawyer Feroz Sattar, after a group from their local mosque got into trouble swimming at an unpatrolled beach near Forster while on a camping trip.
“Thankfully there were off-duty lifeguards camping nearby who were able to perform a mass rescue,” said Abu-Mahmoud.
Swim Brothers at Auburn Ruth Everuss Aquatic Centre. Photo: Amelie Zreika.
“When Feroz and I heard that story, it resonated with us. These were people we knew in our local community, so we knew there had to be some sort of program.”
Today, they run foundational swimming classes as well as surf life saving programs to promote accessible and culturally sensitive swimming lessons for all.
“It is about developing those communities, those safe spaces for them to feel comfortable to learn,” Abu-Mahmoud said.
They want to learn how to save a family member if they were to ever drown.
Their partnership with Surf Life Saving NSW allows participants to progress from pool lessons to ocean training and surf rescue qualifications to receive their Bronze Medallion, the formal qualifications to become a lifesaver, with Wanda Surf Life Saving Club (SLSC) in Cronulla.
“Who would have thought that people from South-Western Sydney and Auburn are connecting with people from Cronulla,” Abu-Mahmoud said.
“We are going on a surf camp with people from Cronulla where we spend the weekend together at the beach, swimming and having barbecues.
“It is a really cool outcome of the program that we never initially intended.”
Participants at Swim Brothers. Photo: Amelie Zreika.
Abdullah Mahmud, a former Swim Brothers student, learnt how to swim through their programs from 2021.
He is now a qualified lifesaver who worked as a volunteer patrolling lifesaver with Wanda SLSC.
“I had a friend, who had a drowning incident and passed away down south near Jervis Bay,” Mahmud said.
“I always had a desire to learn how to swim, but this was the catalyst for me to be like, no, I really need to do something about it.
“As a complete beginner, Omar put working with Surf Life Saving Club as a goal in front of me. So I put 110 per cent effort in and tried to go all the way.”
Abdullah Mahmud winning ‘Patrol Member of the month’ when working as a volunteer patrolling lifesaver at Wanda SCLC. Photo supplied.
Now living in Queensland and studying medicine, the former lifesaver competes in triathlons.
“I don’t know if I would have taken that first step if there wasn’t something like this, like culturally and religiously sensitive, with people that are just like me,” Mahmud said.
“I see them as my brothers and I can almost never repay how much they did for us.”
Co-founder Omar Abu-Mahmoud instructing his lesson. Photo: Amelie Zreika.
Last year, Abu-Mahmoud and Sattar founded Her Swim School, the sister arm of Swim Brothers to provide the same program for women in a culturally sensitive way.
“For a long time, participants [of Swim Brothers] would ask what about my sister, my wife, my daughter; so what we wanted to do is replicate what we did with Swim Brothers,” said Abu-Mahmoud.
Her Swim School team and participants. Photo supplied.
“There is actually much more demand for Her Swim School than Swim Brothers,” he said.
Manar Alaqbari, a neuroscience and psychology student at the University of Sydney and a swim instructor at Her Swim School, said the impact went beyond learning how to swim.
“Most of them don’t even come in wanting to learn how to swim for themselves. It’s more that they want to learn how to save a family member if they were to ever drown,” she said.
“They bring food and sweets and treats for each other. They talk, they ask how your family’s doing overseas, they plan coffee dates. They really just try their best in the lessons, and they build a community that they might have not had, had they not attended these classes.”
Parliamentary Secretary to the Premier Julia Finn said: “The NSW Government is committed to promoting health and wellbeing in the community, and [Her Swim School] is a testament to that commitment.”
Wanda SLSC watchtower. Photo: Amelie Zreika.
The report also revealed that in 2025, 32 per cent of all drowning victims were born overseas, consistent with the decade-long average, with the worst rate of deaths from the UK, China, India, Malaysia, Nepal and Papua New Guinea.
Under the NSW Government’s Learn to Swim Program, Swim Brothers and Her Swim School are delivering swim and water safety programs for those born overseas, and those living in the most disadvantaged areas of NSW.
Both swim programs provide classes for refugees from Gaza, ensuring greater swim literacy tailored to trauma from war.
“One of my favourite things we do is the refugee program for Palestinian ladies,” said Alaqbari.
“Just being with those ladies, being in that super supportive environment, is incredible. They don’t speak English well, but they all try their best, and they’ve been teaching me Arabic too; I’ve been getting corrected too much.”
Participants of Swim Brothers at Auburn Ruth Everuss Pools. Photo: Amelie Zreika.
Steven Pearce, the CEO of Surf Life Saving NSW, said: “What Feroz and Omar have done in establishing the Swim Brothers program is to be commended. When it comes to coastal drownings, people from Western Sydney, particularly people from diverse communities, are identified as an at risk group.”
Despite their success, Abu-Mahmoud said the drowning report highlights a need for more people to get involved in ensuring water safety education.
“There is a shortage of swimming instructors, and it is even more difficult to find instructors for a niche, culturally sensitive environment.” Abu-Mahmoud told Central News.
“One of the main ways we are able to run the programs is because of university students; it’s because they’re just more available.
“We want the statistics to go down, not get worse. So we need to continue having programs to really break down those barriers and increase participation and education.”
Main image by Amelie Zreika.
