Two councils have been fined after pleading guilty to safety breaches where a child was found unconscious at the bottom of a swimming pool.
In June 2012, an 11-year-old primary school pupil was discovered by a member of the public lying on the bottom of the pool. Lifeguards were able to resuscitate the boy, who later made a full recovery.
Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council both admitted safety breaches when they appeared in court yesterday. Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard that the school party did not have a formal booking at the pool but were allowed to swim in depths of up to 2.2 metres.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found issues with staffing levels and lifeguard positioning at the pool, and the effective management of educational excursions at the school, owned by the two councils.
Aberdeen City Council was fined £9,000 while Aberdeenshire Council was fined £4,000. HM inspector of health and safety, Sarah Forbes, said: ‘Educational excursions have clear benefits to pupils and many thousands of such excursions occur each year without incident.
‘This specific incident was easily preventable however today’s proceedings should not deter those who organise or participate in such activities. Those organising educational excursions must consider foreseeable risks and take reasonable steps to reduce these. Managed properly, swimming pools provide a safe place for fun and exercise.’
