children and water

Children have an almost universal fascination with water, and parents an equally almost universal fear of it, or of their children being near it. We have all heard the horror stories of children drowning in a pond, or even a shallow puddle and our hearts go out to those unfortunate few who have suffered such a fate.

But we seem to live in a fear-driven compensation culture, which stifles creativity or adventure because of the risk of hurt. Authorities and companies cannot afford to take risks, or allow other to take them. Consequentially, more and more things get banned in the interests of public safety. The world may be safer as a result but it is certainly blander.

As a young child I would walk the suburban mile or so to school on my own, ride my bike to visit friends, play down at the dump, swim in the sea and generally have freedoms which my own children have not been able to experience. But creative play is an essential part of a child's development and must be catered for somehow. A love and respect of water should be encouraged and this requires contact and familiarity with it. I believe that those most at risk are those who do not appreciate the dangers and those who are too young to.

It is true, of course, that much of this familiarity, or lack of, will be caused by the geography of your environment. If you don't have water in daily proximity, it is hard to become familiar with it. if you don't see with your own eyes how a little stream can become a raging torrent after a downpour, then you will not be aware of the potential danger. Knowing the dangers brings about respect, gives us boundaries beyond which we know that things aren't safe.

There's another good reason for us to have regular experiences of water (no - I don't mean washing!) and that is a spiritual one, although we may not think of it in such terms. Water is a vital element, which, through modern living, we now regard as no more than a right of utility. But water is the life force of the planet, and so of ourselves. Why else would we want it in our gardens? It soothes us, distracts us from our cares, puts us in touch with those deeper fundamentals of life, if we but let it. Children who experience this often can only be better off for it.

Okay, so if I've convinced you that it's good for children to experience water, let's think about how we might do so with some safety. First of all, they should be supervised by an adult or responsible elder child, that goes without saying. I don't advocate that you leave them alone!

I have some empathy for the designers of the Princess Diana memorial water feature, who clearly wanted children to experience water in a positive way, but also some incredulity that they should use such smooth and hard stone and not expect there to be accidents. When millions are spent, common sense seems to go out the window.

If there's not much you can do about the wider environment, then all you can focus upon is any water that you have in your own garden. If you are lucky enough to have a natural source of water, such as a stream or river running past, there will be little you can do about it's aspect. I don't know if there are any statistics available as to the ages of children that have accidents with water, but parental sense will tell us all that children under five have little comprehension of danger and must be watched very carefully, as must those of all ages with special needs. Existing water features should perhaps be fenced off while children are in their early years.

Steep sides are the most dangerous aspect of a water feature, preventing children (and animals) from being able to stand up or climb out. Incidentally, it's amazing how many people will throw their hands up in horror at the idea of a pond but not give a thought to the swimming pool outside their back door, which is deeper, has sheer sides and can be a killer even with the cover on.

With gently sloping sides, layers of gravel or shingle protect the pond liner and also give good grip for feet and hands - bare liner tends to be slippery and is more vulnerable to damage. Whilst mum's concerned with the child's safety, dad's concerned about his liner being punctured (he did the hard work)! Good construction helps all round, although that is not the subject of this article. Also if you have an overhanging deck, make sure the water is not too deep at this point, and that children can't get trapped underneath it. Grids can also be built into a pond, sitting just under the water level. These need careful thought as to their construction as they must take the weight of a person without breaking. The danger is these can look very industrial and also inhibit the natural rhythm of water.

As a final thought, if you want moving water but don't want the depth of a pond, consider a stream garden, where water just flows along a shallow water-course. There is no pond and the water just disappears underground into a hidden sump tank, which houses the pump.

In conclusion, there are many things that children learn from playing with water: self confidence, balance, awareness of danger, responsibility, of wildlife and of natures rhythms. A careful and reasoned approach is all that is required for allow a child safe, creative exploration. And of course, we adults are all children at heart, too.