PEOPLE who walk on Bude beaches, particularly on Wednesday and Thursday evenings, may wonder what the several groups of children in red and yellow hats with bright yellow vests are up to.

These children are members of Bude Surf Life saving Club (Bude SLSC), and are currently undergoing training to become life-savers, not just of casualties in the water, but on dry land too. They are learning to keep all of us safe in a variety of situations.

The children have been training to spot hazards on the beach, as well as learning about tides and rip currents and how to recognise different types of waves, helping them to identify, prevent and deal with dangers.

Additionally, they learn various rescue techniques, using equipment designed for surf beaches, such as rescue board paddling and how to pick up both conscious and unconscious casualties. They practice rescuing swimmers using a floating rescue tube, including negotiating waves and methods of preventing panicking casualties from pushing them under water.

The children also work on fitness and swimming and paddling strength, so that they may become effective and speedy rescuers.

Furthermore, first aid is taught so that members become proficient in treating minor injuries, through to knowing how to perform effective cardiopulmonary resuscitation on unconscious and not breathing casualties. The trainees are presented with a variety of scenarios, not just beach based, such as someone with a spinal injury, choking, experiencing a heart attack and suffering from hypothermia or shock.

At Bude SLSC, children start learning all of this from the age of seven in a progressive way. When they are 16, they embark on the full lifeguard course, which involves 40 hours of supervised training, having built up knowledge and many of the skills needed to become fully qualified RNLI lifeguards. The people skills they acquire also help them develop as wonderful citizens too.

Adults can also take part in training, and many of the young people and adults involved have gone on to become First Responders. All of the training is provided by volunteer Bude SLSC coaches, who have taken the time to become fully qualified experts and who give up many hours of their time teaching young people.

Members of Bude SLSC also work hard to raise money for equipment, training aids and for the club to keep functioning.

During busy periods, Bude SLSC members patrol the beaches to provide back up for the RNLI professional lifeguards. Working in co-operation with the RNLI means that the RNLI understands the skills set of our patrol teams, so they know how patrol members may be usefully employed in helping to keep the public safe.

Many rescues throughout the year have been performed by trained members of Bude SLSC at times when the beaches are not manned by the RNLI.

A spokesperson for Bude SLSC wrote: “Our Bude community is lucky that there are so many children and adults from Bude SLSC with the skills and knowledge to know what steps to take in various emergencies, helping to save lives and keep all of us safe.”

For more information on Bude SLSC, visit www.budeslsc.co.uk