Baby, water lot of fun!

Hundreds of families in Glasgow are signing up for an award-winning course that is designed to make the most of babies' natural affinity with water and teach vital safety techniques.

Drowning remains the third highest cause of accidental death in the UK.

In most cases it is the shock of sudden submersion that causes children to panic.

Teachers at UK-wide company Water Babies say introducing babies to water as early as possible means they will be less likely to experience fear if they fall in.

Last year alone, the firm says three water babies south of the border saved their own lives - one in an unheated pool, another in a canal and a third in a flood-swelled stream.

Shauna Ansell, 43, who teaches classes in the city's Marriott Hotel, said: "The earlier you get babies into the water the more relaxed and confident they become."

Babies can be taught virtually from birth in hydrotherapy pools and progress to a swimming pool when they reach around 14lb, or 3 or 4 months. They will instinctively hold their breath when their faces are submerged.

The course also teaches them to control their breathing, reducing the risk of swallowing water.

Lorraine Wilson, 36, from the West End of Glasgow, has been taking her seven-month-old daughter Patti to classes since she was 11 weeks old.

She said: "Patti is already doing underwater swims and learning to hold on to the side.

"I think it's amazing that she's going to have the skills to be confident in the water which is something I didn't learn until a much later age.

"The classes are really sociable for babies and mums."

As well as the safety aspect, Shauna, who is mum to five-year-old Ewan, says participating babies have improved sleeping and eating patterns.

She said: "Half an hour of exercise is a lot of work for a small baby. It's also relaxing."

Water Babies was named Best Children's Activity Provider in the national Tommy's Let's Get Baby Friendly Awards last month.