Bournemouth beach deaths: Parliament hears mother's safety plea

A mother whose 12-year-old daughter drowned off Bournemouth beach has had her proposals to improve water safety raised in Parliament.

Sunnah Khan from Buckinghamshire is thought to have been caught in a riptide near the town's main pier.

Another teenager, Joe Abbess, 17, from Southampton, also died and eight others were injured.

Aylesbury MP Rob Butler raised the issue during a debate on water safety and drowning prevention.

Mr Butler said Stephanie Williams had expressed concern "about the likelihood that more parents will receive the devastating news that their child has drowned".

The Conservative MP told the Commons: "There is a strong case for water safety to be taught to children, in particular, and the most obvious way to do so is at school."

He added that swimming lessons were "not quite the same as teaching water safety in its broadest sense".

He said Ms Williams also wanted to see improved signage near to water, and to encourage people to wear brightly coloured swimwear to make them easier to identify in an emergency.

He said: "Too many people are dying when they don't need to."

Education minister Claire Coutinho said: "We absolutely support the teaching of swimming and water safety to all children during their time at school."

She said national curriculum guidance states primary school children should learn to "perform safe self-rescue in different water-based situations".

She added: "In partnership with sector organisations, we are supporting more schools to teach primary and secondary pupils important aspects of water safety, and that will include cold-water shock, rip currents and keeping safe near frozen water."

A preliminary inquest hearing was told there was a "suggestion" a riptide led to the teenagers deaths. A further pre-inquest hearing is due on 18 September.

Riptides are strong currents running out to sea that can quickly drag people and objects away from the shoreline to deeper water.

Follow BBC South on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].