Mermaid birthday and pool parties: a safety plan

A mermaid party by the pool is a lovely idea. It is also the kind of gathering where children often get into trouble in the water. A simple plan, made before the first guest arrives, removes most of the risk.

This guide is written for Singapore, where many parties happen at condominium pools, but it works anywhere.

Why parties need a plan

At a party, every adult assumes someone else is watching. The US Pool Safely campaign puts it plainly: "everyone thinks someone else is watching". Meanwhile there is cake, music, presents and conversation.

Singapore's own figures show why that matters.

• Pool parties. KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH) looked at child submersion cases from 2011 to 2015. One in five happened during pool parties, and these accounted for half of the child drowning deaths in that period.
• Party hours. About 40% of the incidents happened between 4 pm and 8 pm, from Friday to Sunday.
• Young children. More than three quarters of the children were aged six or under.
• Private pools. KKH's 2024 injury report, covering 2012 to 2023, found most child drownings happened in pools. About three in four of those were in private pools, which in the report include housing estates and hotels.
• Who finds the child. In those private-pool cases, family members found 61% of children, and lifeguards only 2%.

A study by doctors in Singapore of 107 pool drownings attended by SCDF ambulances from 2012 to 2014 found a lifeguard recorded in only about one in eleven private-pool cases. One case involved a toddler who wandered away from a poolside family gathering.

So at most condo pools, the adults at the party are the safety system.

Before the party

• Check your condo's pool rules. Ask management about bookings, guest limits, hours and whether tails or inflatables are allowed.
• Count the children and their ages. Ask parents who can swim, who cannot, and who is still learning. Royal Life Saving WA advises finding this out before anyone gets in.
• Ask parents to stay for younger children and non-swimmers. Write it on the invitation.
• Suggest bright swimwear. RLSS UK notes that blue, grey and white blend into water; yellow, orange and green are easier to see.
• Find the nearest defibrillator (AED) and first aid kit, and know the pool's full address.
• Line up your water watchers in advance. Do not leave it to the day.

Water watchers

A water watcher is one adult whose only job, for a set time, is watching the children in the water.

What makes a good watcher

• An adult. Singapore's Families for Life says the supervisor should be an adult, not an older child. The American Red Cross sets 16 as the very minimum, and prefers adults.
• Sober and undistracted. No phone, no book, no conversations, no alcohol. The US CDC advises exactly this.
• Clearly marked. Royal Life Saving WA suggests a bright hat. The Red Cross uses a "Water Watcher" card on a lanyard. Anything everyone recognises will do.
• Close enough to reach. For young children, that means in the water, within arm's reach.
• Ideally trained in CPR. If not, they should know who is.

Shifts and handovers

Watching water properly is tiring. The Red Cross and Pool Safely both suggest rotating watchers, for example every 15 minutes.

• Hand over in person. Pass the hat or card directly, and say "you have the pool" out loud.
• Keep watching until the next watcher has it. No gaps while someone fetches a drink.
• If you must leave, hand over first. Royal Life Saving WA is clear on this.

Write the rota down. Keep the host off it during cake and presents.

How many adults?

No single ratio fits every pool. Royal Life Saving WA gives a useful guide by age, and adds that a large group needs several supervisors.

Our suggestion is our own practice, not an official standard. If in doubt, add a watcher.

Party rules

Royal Life Saving WA suggests agreeing rules and talking them through with the children before anyone gets in. Show them the deep end, the shallow end and the steps out. Keep the list short:

1. Nobody goes in until a watcher says so.
2. No running, pushing or dunking.
3. No breath-holding contests or "who can stay under longest". See Breath-holding games.
4. Non-swimmers stay where their feet touch the bottom, with their adult.
5. Out of the pool for cake, presents and storms.

Tails at a party

Our honest advice is to leave tails out of a party swim. A tail takes away a child's ability to stand and kick to the side. A busy, splashy pool full of excited children makes that harder still.

If tails are part of the plan, use these rules:

• Only children who are ready. Each one passes the checklist in Is my child ready for a mermaid tail?, including taking the tail off alone.
• Only their own tail. Never lend a tail to a child whose swimming you do not know.
• One tail in the water at a time, with its own watcher, separate from the general water watcher.
• A set area, away from the crowd, at a depth the child knows.
• No somersaults, races or long swims, as Royal Life Saving Society Australia advises for tails. And no breath-holding games, which is our rule.
• Tail off when the child is tired or cold, or when the pool gets busy.

For choosing and checking a tail, see Choosing a safe mermaid tail for a child.

Booking an entertainment mermaid

A performing mermaid can be the highlight of the day. Ask about training, and who will be their safety watcher. Keep guests out of the pool while they perform, and keep children at the edge beside an adult. Our guide A mermaid at your event covers this in full.

The performer's watcher looks after the performer. Your water watchers still look after the children.

Food, drink and alcohol

• Keep the bar and buffet away from the edge. No glass on the pool deck.
• Adults on watch do not drink. The CDC advises against alcohol while supervising children in water.
• Adults who have been drinking stay out of the water. RLSS UK links alcohol to about one in four UK drownings.

If something goes wrong

Decide these roles before the party. A short plan beats a long one.

1. Get the child out of the water at once. Do not wait to see if they are playing.
2. Shout for help and point to one adult: "You, call 995."
3. Start CPR if the child is not breathing normally. If you are trained, begin with two rescue breaths. If not, the 995 call taker will talk you through it, and chest compressions alone are far better than nothing.
4. Send someone to the AED, and someone to meet the ambulance at the guardhouse or lobby.
5. Keep watching the other children. Royal Life Saving WA lists this as part of the emergency plan. Clear the pool.

When you call 995, the Singapore Civil Defence Force asks for your name and number, the exact location with postal code, and the child's age and condition. Stay on the line until told to hang up. SCDF's myResponder app has a "Call 995" button that sends your location.

Any child who has lost consciousness in the water needs a hospital check, even if they seem fine afterwards. StatPearls, a medical reference, advises this. If in any doubt, call 995 or ask a doctor.

Your printable plan

Fill this in before the party and stick it near the pool.

• Pool rules checked with condo management.
• Party rules agreed with the children before anyone gets in.
• Deep end, shallow end and steps shown to every child.
• No alcohol for anyone on watch.
• Pool cleared for cake, presents and storms.
• Toys out of the water and gate closed when swimming ends.

Common mistakes

• "There are lots of adults here." Lots of adults is not the same as one adult watching.
• Relying on a lifeguard. Many condo pools have none, and the CDC advises watching even when one is there.
• An older child in charge of younger ones.
• Inflatables as safety devices. KKH and the CDC both say they are not.
• Forgetting the end. As parents chat and pack up, a child slips back to the water.

For everyday supervision beyond parties, see Supervising children in water and Never alone.