The Social Impact of Community Pools in the Pilbara

Royal Life Saving Society Western Australia (RLSSWA) is the largest provider of water safety education in Western Australia, and they depend on community pools to deliver this education. Since 2003, BHP has partnered with RLSSWA providing $5.2 million towards the delivery of the Water Safe WA program in the Pilbara region.

The Centre for Social Impact at The University of Western Australia (CSI UWA) was commissioned by RLSSWA to evaluate the social impacts of community pools and associated programs and initiatives in Port Hedland, Newman, Yandeyarra, and Jigalong communities.

The final report below shares strong evidence that these programs are generating real social impact across a range of areas. It unpacks the evidenced outcomes across health and well-being, social connection, safety and education, social cohesion, and employment, and presents targeted recommendations for further investment and growth.

Why do community pools matter?

On the surface, community pools might seem like simply places to swim. However, shared pools, particularly those in regional and remote areas, offer significant value for community life.

Described as social hubs, community pools present an opportunity for people to meet, learn, and share and connect with culture and Country. They also promote health and wellbeing, as well as create and promote vocational skills and prospects.

Swimming in the Pilbara offers both recreational opportunities and challenges due to the region’s remote location. While natural waterholes and pools are popular for cooling off, the risk of drowning remains a concern.

Evaluating the social impacts of pools in Pilbara

A mixed-methods evaluation using quantitative/administrative data from RLSSWA, and qualitative data collected via interviews, along with short-term ethnographic fieldwork, found high engagement with RLSSWA programs and initiatives across all four sites.

Outputs: Programs and activities

Over a 10-month period, there were:

• 1,194 Infant Aquatics participants
• 5,976 Swim and Survive participants
• 365 Swim for Fruit program participants
• 90 participants engaged in Junior Lifeguard Club
• 27 peer mentors who were qualified with First Aid and Bronze Medallion
• 147 Talent pool participants
• 56 employment outcomes

“Oh, if the pool wasn’t there, they’d be devastated. It’s absolute relief.” [Health practitioner]

Social impacts of community pools

The existence of pools and RLSSWA’s programs have a particular health benefit for remote communities which include physical activity, increased swimming abilities and water safety skills, socialisation, and preventing disease and skin conditions.

Health and wellbeing

• The pools promote wellbeing through physical activity while having fun and connecting with others.
• Positive physical health outcomes directly related to pool

Social connection

• The pools are “community hubs” and places of social exchange, with a range of activities and events to bring locals together
• The pools facilitate the development of new relationships and support networks
• They have become safe and inclusive spaces

Safety and education

• Relative to population, programmes were reaching a significant number of children and babies and this directly contributes to the prevention of drowning in WA.
• The “No School No Pool” policy increases school attendance. It is generally well received by locals and is being applied in a place-based way that is sensitive to local wishes.

Social cohesion

• Police utilise the pool space and relationships to facilitate outreach to young people
• Programs and activities draw in the wider community

Employment

• The Talent Pool engagement strategy is not only novel, but highly effective at creating engagement and employment opportunities for young people in the region
• All Talent Pool KPIs were exceeded for 2024 across participation, community events, pools work experience, and three-month employment retention
• Talent Pool’s engagement strategy with young people is effective in large part because it is dynamic, creative, and fun; participants are remunerated; and they have the chance to develop skills for further employment opportunities
• The benefit of developing local skills and qualifications in the Pilbara cannot be overstated, as the cost to attract staff external to the region is often prohibitively high

Recommendations: Opportunities and challenges

There are many opportunities for further increasing the social impacts of community pools, including creating highly effective culturally safe place-based services and programs. There is an opportunity for Aboriginal culture and knowledge to be integrated more deeply into RLSSWA programs and practices.

“So we need a kind of written instruction in Aboriginal language, but also in Whitefella language and to put them together to integrate, but to ensure that we have the cultural elders available when somebody goes to communities and sees a source of water that needs to be looked at: Is it going to be safe? Can we bring our young people here and teach them the safety measures through the Aboriginal way and the Whitefella way?” [Aboriginal elder]

The report delves into these opportunities in more detail, alongside recommendations for investment and growth. These include:

• Building relationships between water and Aboriginal culture: There are opportunities for RLSSWA to increase the outcomes of improved cultural knowledge sharing, better connection to country, and greater self-determination
• Increasing adult engagement in Remote Communities: In remote communities at present, 6–11 years olds are most active users of the pools and adults tend to miss out on the health and wellbeing benefits offered by the pools
• Maintaining creative involvement with young people: The Talent Pool program in the Pilbara has been very successful in creating engagement with young people and generating employment pathways
• Addressing resourcing constraints: More support and resourcing is needed to improve the quality of service delivery
• Raising awareness of RLSSWA: Investing some resources into an expansion of brand awareness in the Pilbara would increase knowledge of programs and bolster outcomes
• Resourcing ageing infrastructure: The social benefits of pools cannot be achieved without well-functioning infrastructure. The effects of ageing infrastructure are already being felt in the Pilbara, for example, pool leaks which require constant replenishing

“Some kids that are struggling, they come from a bad home environment, but they can come to this place and make it their own. They have opportunities that they wouldn’t elsewhere. And then they tend to be role models for the rest of the community. We all know each other in this town, we all know where we come from, how our home lives are. They see these kids struggling, they come to Talent Pool for work and slowly make their way. It really builds the way for the younger generation.” [Former Talent Pool member