Safety Briefing
Acknowledgement of risk
Participating on the Aqua Park is physically challenging and carry risks of personal injury that we cannot entirely eliminate. You should only participate on our sessions at Aqua Park Group with a full understanding of the risks and the steps you can take to minimise them.
All participants must sign a waiver before arriving at the Aqua Park. U18’s must be signed in by a parents or guardian.
Rutland Water & Thurrock Lakeside Safety Briefing
Cosmeston Lakes Safety Briefing
Entry requirements
- The minimum height to participate is 1.20m.
- The minimum age to participate at Cosmeston Lakes is 8+years old.
- The minimum age to participate at Rutland Water and Thurrock Lakeside is 6+years old.
- All participants must be able to swim 25m unaided and confident in the water.
- Have not had a previous injury that could effect your safe use of the park, including dislocations.
- There is no weight limit on the Aqua Park.
- Must not be under the influence of drugs, alcohol or medication.
Parental supervision
- *Rutland and Lakeside only* Children aged 6 and 7 years old can attend any session provided that an adult or guardian of 18+ is supervising them on the Aqua Park at all times, on a 1 adult to 3 children ratio.
- All locations: Children aged 8 to 15 years old inclusive can attend any session but must have either a adult or guardian on shore, or on the Aqua Park with them for the duration of the session.
- All locations: 16 years old and over can attend any session without supervision.
Preventing injuries
There are steps you can take to minimise the chances of sustaining an injury whilst taking part on the Aqua Park.
- You must watch our Safety Briefing before attending and follow all the instructions of the lifeguards.
- Warm up thoroughly before your session. Stay with your group.
- If you cramp up, stay calm and signal for help from one of our lifeguards.
- Wear good quality waterproof sunscreen. Be aware of your surroundings and other people on the Aqua Park.
- Be honest with yourself about your ability, listen to your body. If you are tired, take a break.
- Enter the water feet first, checking landing zones before you make a jump or slide.
- Only attempt flips and tricks within your ability and if you are trained to do them safely.
- If you have any questions – ask!
Preventing Illness & infections
- Cover any cuts with a waterproof dressing
- Wear footwear to protect feet from cuts
- Avoid ingesting or drinking the water
- Either; wash your hands with liquid soap and fresh water immediately after the activity
- Or; use hand sanitiser, especially before eating and drinking.
- Wash or shower throughly when you get home.
Check, Clean, Dry your equipement!
Help stop the spread of invasive plants and animals in our waters! Invasive species can be small and hard to spot so are easily spread on damp equipment and clothing. You can help protect the environment and activities you enjoy by keeping your kit free of invasive plants and animals, whenever you leave the water remember to:
- Personal wetsuit and wetshoe use is not permitted at Cosmeston lakes
- Check your equipment, boat, and clothing after leaving the water for mud, aquatic animals or plant material. Remove anything you find and leave it at the site.
- Clean everything thoroughly as soon as you can, paying attention to areas that are damp or hard to access. Use hot water if possible.
- Dry everything for as long as you can before using elsewhere as some invasive plants and animals can survive for over two weeks in damp conditions.
What are the ages, parental supervision, swimming ability and admissions criteria?
Swimming Ability
It is a requirement than you can swim 25m unaided and you should be confident in the water as are likely to go underwater. You have to be able to pull yourself up out of the water, and it can be tiring.
Height Restriction
There is a minimum height of 1.20m permitted on the Aqua Park.
There is no weight restriction.
Age: Rutland and Lakeside: Open to children aged 6 +
Age: Cosmeston Lakes: Open to children aged 8 +
Parental Supervision Rutland and Lakeside: Open to children aged 6 and 7 years old can attend any session provided that an adult or guardian of 18+ is supervising them on the Aqua Park at all times, on a 1 adult to 3 children ratio.
Children aged 8 to 15 years old inclusive must have either an over 18 adult/guardian supervising and observing from the shore, or on the Aqua Park with them for the duration of the session.
16 years old and over can attend any session without supervision.
Parental Supervision Cosmeston Lakes: Children aged 8 to 15 years old inclusive must have either an over 18 adult/guardian supervising and observing from the shore, or on the Aqua Park with them for the duration of the session.
16 years old and over can attend any session without supervision.
Can I wear spectacles on the Aqua Park?
For safety reasons, spectacles are not permitted on the Aqua Park. As it involves physical activity where slips, trips, bumps, and falls are likely, this policy helps prevent personal injury, loss or damage. Prescription goggles or contacts are a good alternative.
Can I participate if I am pregnant?
If there is any possibility you might be pregnant, you should not take part.
Can I wear shoes on the park?
You can wear wetsuit boots or shoes on the park, otherwise barefoot is fine. You cannot wear trainers or hard-soled shoes on the park. If you attend barefoot, please bring flip-flops or shoes to wear on site. You are not permitted to walk around the site barefoot.
Carer tickets?
We are committed to providing an enjoyable and safe visit for all our guests. It is important to be aware that our decision-making is based on The Equality Act, and we help you communicate the types of reasonable adjustments you should be legally entitled to.
You can email us with proof of disability to make a Free Carer Ticket application. Once your application has been approved, you can make a booking online for the disabled guest, and email us to add the carer ticket to the booking, you can not book a carer ticket online. Please allow at least 48hrs for us to be able to review your request. Applications made under this time frame to your booking will be reviewed on a ‘best effort’ policy by the customer service team.
A carer must be over 14 years of age and capable of assisting the guest who has the disability. The carer would be expected to understand the disabled person’s condition and assist them in managing it for the duration of their visit. If more than one carer’s ticket is required, a letter from a GP or consultant is needed stating the number of carers required. The support must be due to disability-related needs.
Participating in water sports activities at the Aqua Park is vigorous and physically demanding. Please check the entry requirements to ensure that the activity is suitable on an individual basis and seek professional medical advice before booking.
For proof of disability, please provide any ONE of the following forms of documentation:
- Entitlement to Disability Living Allowance for children under 16 or DLA/Personal Independent
Payments (PIP) for those aged 16-64, either in the form of a letter stating that the benefit has been
awarded, or the actual Allowance book - Attendance Allowance or Carer’s Allowance letter of award
- Incapacity Benefit books, or a letter notifying the recipient that the benefit has been awarded
- Incapacity Benefit or Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- A valid Blue Badge
- In the case of visual impairment, a registration card known as the BD8 or a Certificate of Visual
Impairment (CVI) - A local authority registration document which is local to the attraction where it is being submitted (e.g an RCC Carer’s Passport)
- Credibility’s Access Card
Once we receive your application our team will review your supporting documents. This is not the same as other decision-making systems you may be used to such as claiming disability benefits.
For this reason, the threshold for making decisions is high and each adjustment we consider must have an appropriate description of need and supporting evidence.
Do you have Lifeguards?
We train our teams in-house in the UK’s premier Lifeguarding Qualification. Our teams are trained in the Royal Lifesaving Saving Society Open Water Lifeguard course and Aqua Park Module. This represents 4 days of training.
We are also UK Aqua Park Accredited Royal Life Saving Society venues.
All our sessions are overseen by our friendly team of lifeguards who help you make the most of your visit and keep you safe.
Our safety culture
Our mission is to provide a 5 star experience that is fun and challenging for all our customers in an environment in which they feel safe and respected. We are always looking for ways to lead the Aqua Park industry by improving safety standards, investing in our people and improving visitor experience.
We train and develop our people season on season, becoming the first UK Aqua Park operator to be recognised as an Approved Training Centre by the RLSS in 2018. The Group has now trained over 300 employees across 3 locations in UK’s leading Open Water Lifeguarding qualification.
In 2022, whilst working closely with the RLSS we rolled out a new Aqua Park Training module to all our lifeguard teams. This means the Aqua Park specific training we provide to our teams is now a recognised qualification.
We also work with safety partners like South west fire and rescue and Rutland Medical solutions to give our teams extra training throughout the season.
We are passionate about Water Safety and support the RLSS on water safety education with children in the community.
We are proud to be key founding members of the Aqua Parks Association UK and Ireland along with other operators and the RLSS.
The Association exists to support its members, provide expert advice, help create networking connections and create a safer Aqua Park Industry for all to enjoy.
All our locations have been received RLSS Industry Approved Aqua Park accreditations.