School Pools - Ministry of Education Swimming Pool Policy

Health & Safety Issues
Guidelines for Health & Safety In Schools
Swimming Pool Water Quality Standard

The Ministry of Education recognises being able to swim is important for all New Zealanders, and the role schools have traditionally played in teaching children to swim. The Ministry has established the following policy for the provision and upkeep of swimming pools.

New and replacement pools

The building and funding of a new pool is the responsibility of Boards of Trustees, often with the assistance of the community. This includes the pool and associated facilities such as fences, changing sheds, pool covers and roofing, filter plant. The design of swimming pools and associated plant is covered by NZS 4441:1985.

Removing or upgrading the pool

If the school decides to permanently close or decommission the pool, it can have it removed, and provide for the filling and re-landscaping of the area. This will need to be factored this into the school's 10YPP and budgeted into its 5YP agreement. Similarly, any major upgrade of the pool would have to be programmed into the budget in the same way. Note that the Ministry is unlikely to agree to a 10YPP budget that includes an upgrade to a pool that has come to the end of its economic life.
If the pool is shared with your community, any upgrade to the community share of the pool will have to be paid for out of Board funds (not Ministry provided funding under the 5YP Programme) and in accordance with the arrangement between the school and the community user.

Maintenance funding for your pool

Schools receive funding to maintain their pools through the maintenance component of the operational funding. The size of your pool is used to work out the amount of funding up to a maximum size. Maximum pool sizes are: learners 25 x 6 metres; intermediate/secondary 33.3 x 12 metres.
Boards will need to budget their own funds for the extra cost of maintaining pools bigger than these sizes. Maintenance includes: painting the pool, fence repairs, the filtration plant, ancillary buildings such as changing sheds, and the chemical storage, pool covers, roofing structures.

Operating expenses

The school is responsible for paying for the running costs of the pool out of its operational funding. Operating expenses include: pool chemicals, water charges, salary of the person responsible for maintaining pool hygiene and maintenance (e.g. the caretaker).

Swimming pool water quality standard

Swimming pool water is quickly contaminated by swimmers who bring into the water dirt, sweat, body fats, faecal matter, oral and nasal discharges, as well as hair and lint from swimming togs. Wind blown debris and material from the pool surrounds can also enter the pool and add to the pollution. The New Zealand Standard that governs the quality of water present in swimming pools is NZS 5826:2000 Code of practice for the operation of swimming pools. Refer to the Ministry of Education’s Water Quality Policy.

Sharing the pool with your community

Sharing the pool is a good way to get help with the costs of its upkeep. For any community use, have a formal written agreement with the other users of the pool. Having a written agreement is essential for insurance purposes. It should include how much the community users will pay towards maintenance and operating expenses of the pool. This may include contributions towards major improvements as well.

Fencing of swimming pools

The Fencing of Swimming Pools Act 1987 requires immediate pool areas to be fenced, as specified in the Building Act 1991 and the Building Code. In addition it is the Ministry of Education’s policy that all school pools be fenced to Building Code requirements.

Insurance of pools

The Ministry will insure school swimming pools to the maximum pool sizes (see above for pool sizes).
If there are other users, such as the community, the level of insurance cover will be determined by how much the school uses the pool and how much it is used by others. These levels of usage should be agreed to by the Board and the other users and recorded in writing. If nothing is recorded, the Board will be responsible for the community share of the insurance.

Health & Safety Issues

Thorough planning and sound preparation are the basis of any successful aquatic experience. A well-managed swimming pool, which is regularly maintained, should provide both teachers and students with an enjoyable and rewarding experience. Prior to the start of your swimming season, take the opportunity to upgrade and repair the swimming pool, as well as provide training opportunities for teachers and parents alike on the accepted use of the pool.

Safety is paramount in any aquatic environment and overrides everything else. Teaching in an aquatic environment (including a school swimming pool) differs from teaching in other venues, and it is easy to overlook a number of factors specific to water safety. The use of a risk management identification and planning tool and a safety checklist help the teacher and/or caretaker to recognise potential hazards, find potential problems and identify management and emergency procedures.

Ministry Guidelines for Health and Safety in Schools

The Ministry of Education’s 2003 Guidelines for the Health and Safety, detailing the requirements for health and safety in schools, specifically those relating to school swimming pools are outlined below.

[Refer Health and Safety in Schools 2003. Guidelines to the Health and Safety an Employment Act and the Health And Safety Code of Practice for State and State Integrated Schools. Section 3: The Health and Safety Code of Practice for State and State Integrated Schools.]

31 Swimming pools

31.1 Board of trustee’s duties in relation to pool users

a) During school hours, Boards shall ensure the health and safety of students, staff and others using the school swimming pool as detailed in clauses 31.2 to 31.6 below;

b) Outside of school hours, the Board is not responsible for any harm to pool users provided that when the pool and surroundings is made available to the public, the Board complies with the provisions of this Code. This includes the duty of the Board to warn those who have permission to use the pool of any out of the ordinary, work related hazards that they should be aware of, such as construction work within the pool site.

31.2 Fencing of swimming pools

All school pools should be fenced in accordance with the Fencing of Swimming Pools Act 1987 and the New Zealand Building Code, including a gate with a self-closing mechanism.

31.3 Swimming pool policy

Boards shall have a pool policy detailing the use of the swimming pool. This policy shall be available to all pool users, including the public, who use the pool with the permission of the Board. The policy should be easily accessible, such as on a notice Board beside the gate. The content of the policy shall include rules of the pool, use of equipment and location of amenities and the following safety provisions:

a) No person is to swim alone;

b) Children under 8 years are not permitted in the swimming pool area unless supervised by a person at least 16 years old;

c) During any session when the pool is in use, there shall be at least one person designated as the swimming pool supervisor who will supervise the pool at all times. The number of additional supervisors required will be determined by the number of swimmers;

d) The pool gate shall be securely closed at all times;

e) Behaviour that could be considered dangerous, such as running, pushing, holding under and screaming, is prohibited;

f) A list with an emergency telephone number and the location of the first aid kit.

Ministry of Education’s Swimming Pool Water Quality Standard

The New Zealand standard which governs quality of water in swimming pools is NZS 5826:2000.
The objective of this Standard is to ensure that the water in swimming pools is maintained to safe
chemical and microbiological levels to:

Protect swimmers from unsafe bacteria;

Safeguard swimmers against the discomfit of chemical burns to skin and mucous membranes;

Minimise the damage to the pool and associated equipment; and

Have a pool, which appears clean and sparkling.

How does the water become contaminated?

Swimmers who bring dirt, sweat, body fats, faecal matter, oral and nasal discharges into the water, as well as hair and lint from swimming togs can quickly contaminate swimming pool water. Wind blown debris and material from the pool surrounds can also enter the pool and add to the pollution.

What measures must you take to keep the water clean?

1. In order to ensure that the water remains chemically and microbiologically safe, regular testing is required and the frequency of these tests is specified in NZS 5826:2000.
2. Having an efficient mechanical filter system and chemical treatment of the water maintains the pool water in a safe and hygienic condition for swimmers.
3. You need to be aware of bather load, or the maximum number of people using the pool per day, depending on the size of your pool. On a hot day, loss of disinfecting chlorine through high ultra violet levels and overuse by swimmers as class after class take to the pool, can lead to a failure of the filters and chemical treatment to cope. The resulting degradation of the water can lead to a high health risk for swimmers.

What does the Standard provide?

1. NZS 5826:2000 provides the desired values for the correct pH, alkalinity, calcium hardness, freely available chlorine, total chlorine and other features that make up the pool chemistry.
2. A requirement of the standard is for monthly microbiological monitoring to guard against harmful organisms in the water. This testing cannot be carried out by the school and requires pool water samples to be sent away to laboratories specialising in water treatment. The local public health office can provide the location of the nearest testing laboratory.
3. Advice is also provided in the appendix of the Standard, on the procedures to be followed in the event of a faecal discharge or a diarrhoea incident, which has the potential to introduce giardia or cryptosporidium to pool water.
4. Guidance is also provided on the safe handling and storage of the potentially unstable and explosive pool chemicals.

School pools are "public pools"

Another implication of the Standard is that school pools are classified as "public pools". For public pools the operation of the water treatment systems shall be the responsibility of person(s) holding NZQA unit standards in swimming pool water quality. Also that the management of pool water quality shall be under continuous technical supervision and the qualified person(s) shall be readily accessible when the pool is operating.