HC Deb 16 October 1973 vol 861 cc22-5W
Mr. Greville Janner

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many children aged 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 years respectively have been drowned during each of the last 10 years for which records are available; how many and what percentage of such drownings were in swimming pools, lakes or rivers or streams, or in the sea, respectively; and in how many and in what percentage of such deaths at each of the ages the drowned child was wearing a mask and snorkel.

Mr. Alison

Available information is as follows:—

Age Total Swimming pools Sea Inland waters Other and unspecified places
1970
0 … … … 2 — — — 2
1 … … … 23 — 1 6 16
2 … … … 22 3 — 11 8
3 … … … 19 2 — 11 6
4 … … … 24 1 1 16 6
5 … … … 17 2 — 11 4
6 … … … 21 3 — 16 2
7 … … … 16 2 1 10 3
8 … … … 12 1 2 8 1
9 … … … 17 5 2 5 5
10 … … … 9 1 2 5 1
11 … … … 7 4 — 3 —
12 … … … 10 1 — 7 2
13 … … … 7 2 — 4 1
Total 0–13 … … … 206 27 9 113 57
Percentage … … … 100 13 4 55 28

Age Total Swimming pools Sea Inland waters Other and unspecified places
1971
0 … … … 3 — — — 3
1 … … … 25 — — 5 20
2 … … … 31 2 — 7 22
3 … … … 28 3 1 15 9
4 … … … 23 1 2 14 6
5 … … … 19 3 4 8 4
6 … … … 27 6 1 15 5
7 … … … 21 3 3 14 1
8 … … … 12 2 1 8 1
9 … … … 18 3 4 9 2
10 … … … 9 2 2 4 1
11 … … … 6 2 — 3 1
12 … … … 8 4 1 1 2
13 … … … 3 1 — 2 —
Total 0–13 … … … 233 32 19 105 77
Percentage … … … 100 14 8 45 33

Age Total Swimming pools Sea Inland waters Other and unspecified places
1972 (Provisional)
0 … … … 11 — — 1 10
1 … … … 27 2 — 2 23
2 … … … 29 2 — 4 23
3 … … … 28 2 — 4 22
4 … … … 17 — — 7 10
5 … … … 18 — — 6 12
6 … … … 18 2 2 5 9
7 … … … 5 2 — 1 2
8 … … … 11 2 2 6 1
9 … … … 16 5 1 3 7
10 … … … 10 2 — 1 7
11 … … … 7 3 1 1 2
12 … … … 6 1 1 1 3
13 … … … 6 1 — 3 2
Total 0–13 … … … 209 24 7 45 133
Percentage … … … 100 11 3 22 64

In the four years 1969 to 1972, there has been only one death, that of a 9-year-old boy in a swimming pool in 1969, when the coroner mentioned the wearing of a mask, although there may have been other cases where this fact was not recorded.