Based across the Northern Region during the summer school holidays, Coastal Nippers is a fun, active, and educational programme designed to help children build confidence in and around the water while developing practical beach, surf, and boating safety skills.

Throughout the week, participants take part in hands-on activities, team challenges, surf lifeguard-inspired games, and water-based learning experiences designed to encourage confidence, teamwork, and safer decision-making around the coast.

Children will develop practical water safety skills and knowledge, including:

• Safe water entry and exit techniques
• Floating skills, lifejacket use, duck diving, and wave-catching basics
• How to safely use boogie boards and kneeboards, including leash use and turtle rolls
• Safer boating practices, including entering and exiting vessels, understanding air pockets, and essential safety equipment
• How to use flotation devices to help others while waiting for lifeguards
• How to identify rips and apply the 3Rs: Relax, Raise, Ride
• SunSmart habits: Slip, Slop, Slap, Wrap, Slide
• Team-based water movement drills and lifejacket chain activities
• Correct lifejacket fitting both on land and in the water
• How wind and weather conditions affect beach and water activities
• Surf lifeguard-inspired games, relays, and challenges
• How to read beach signage and recognise common beach hazards
• Why pool toys can be unsafe at the beach and how to use them appropriately if needed

Coastal Nippers helps children develop practical water safety skills, confidence, teamwork, and positive lifelong connections with the ocean. The programme aims to support children to become more capable, safety-aware, and confident around New Zealand's beaches and coastal environments.

Surf to School and the Coastal Water Safety Programme now operate under a fixed course pricing model rather than a per-student charge. This provides schools with:

• Greater cost certainty
• Simpler budgeting and invoicing
• Flexibility for attendance fluctuations on the day
• Reduced administration for schools and organisers

Course pricing is based on the programme package, staffing requirements, and location.

Yes. Each course package has a recommended participant cap to ensure programme quality and safe supervision ratios are maintained. If your group exceeds the package limit, additional staffing or a second course may be required. Please talk to the Community Education team member in your region.

Yes. Where capacity allows, additional students can be added after booking.

• For programmes charged at a per-student rate, additional students will incur the applicable per-student fee.
• For fixed-price programmes, additional students may be accommodated where capacity and staffing allow. If additional instructors or changes to the programme structure are required to safely support the increased numbers, additional charges may apply.

For bookings in Northland, Auckland, and Waikato West Coast, an invoice will be sent to the school following confirmation of the booking for a deposit. Payment terms and requirements will be outlined during the booking process.

For all other areas, invoices will be issued after you attend the programme.

We understand circumstances can change; however, bookings require significant staffing and operational planning. Cancellation terms are:

• On or before the last Friday of the term before the booking date: No cancellation fee.
• Within 14 days before delivery: 50% of the course fee applies.
• Less than 7 days before delivery: 100% of the course fee applies.

Where possible, we will work with schools to reschedule bookings due to unforeseen circumstances.

Rescheduling requests may be considered in exceptional circumstances and are subject to programme availability, staffing, venue availability, and operational requirements. While we will make every reasonable effort to accommodate a request, rescheduling cannot be guaranteed.

Where a programme cannot be rescheduled, or where costs have already been incurred, cancellation fees or other applicable charges may still apply in accordance with our Cancellation Policy.

Schools are expected to provide accurate participant numbers before their programme. These numbers are used to plan staffing, equipment, and programme delivery.

For invoicing purposes, the school will be charged for the greater of the confirmed booking numbers or the number of participants who attend.

If participant numbers exceed the confirmed booking, we cannot guarantee that additional students can be accommodated safely. Where it is possible to include additional participants, any associated costs will apply.

Schools must provide their final confirmed participant numbers by the last Friday of the school term immediately preceding the programme delivery term. Changes requested after this date may not be able to be accommodated and may incur additional charges.

Example:

• Term 1 programme → confirm numbers by the last Friday of Term 4.
• Term 4 programme → confirm numbers by the last Friday of Term 3.

For all in-water activities, schools are required to provide parent helpers and/or school supervisors to support active supervision and student management throughout the session. Schools may provide additional support to higher needs participants or to meet ability levels of the group as may be identified through the school's EOTC practices.

• Required supervision ratio: 1 parent helper/supervisor to 5 students while students are participating in the water.
• Students are typically rotated through activities in smaller groups, meaning not all participants are in the water at the same time.
• Surf Life Saving New Zealand instructors and lifeguards lead all activity delivery, water safety management, and emergency response procedures.
• School staff and parent helpers are expected to actively supervise, support behaviour management, and assist students as required throughout the programme.

Northern Region minimum parent helper requirements. Due to increased resourcing for the programme in this area, the following minimum parent helper requirements apply:

• West Coast beaches (e.g. Piha Beach, Muriwai Beach): Minimum of 6 in-water parent helpers/supervisors required.
• East Coast beaches: Minimum of 4 in-water parent helpers/supervisors required.

This shared supervision approach helps ensure a safe, supportive, and well-managed learning environment for all participants. If your school is experiencing difficulty meeting parent helper or supervision requirements, please speak with us. We understand this can be challenging for some schools and will work with you where possible to help support your session and explore suitable delivery options.

As beach and outdoor environments can change quickly, students should bring:

• Togs / swimwear
• Towel
• Warm clothing
• Hat
• Sunscreen (SPF 30+ recommended)
• Water bottle
• Lunch and snacks
• Wetsuit or a rash shirt (if available)

Programme and safety equipment required for delivery is provided where applicable. Wetsuit availability is limited and is generally only available for specific programmes, such as the Coastal Water Safety Programme, depending on location and operational capacity. Students are encouraged to bring their own wetsuits where possible.

Programmes can be tailored across a wide range of age groups, from early childhood and primary students through to intermediate, secondary, tertiary, and community groups.

Yes. Surf Life Saving New Zealand offers a range of alternative and supplementary programme options that can be delivered outside of the beach environment. These options are particularly useful where transport, weather, venue access, or supervision barriers exist. Available options include:

• Surf to School classroom-based theory sessions
• Surf to School theory and pool-based programmes (where a school pool is available)
• Water safety education presentations
• School assemblies
• Community and event-based activations
• Tailored workshops to support curriculum or student learning outcomes

These flexible delivery options help ensure schools and communities can continue accessing water safety education year-round, regardless of location or barriers to beach-based delivery.

Yes. We can work with schools and groups to tailor programme outcomes, duration, and activities to suit curriculum goals, student needs, and local environments.

Continuing the journey. Our programmes are designed to support lifelong engagement with water safety, helping students build confidence, knowledge, and practical skills over time, not just through a single experience. Schools can support student learning through progressive programme pathways, including:

• Surf to School classroom and pool-based education
• Beach Education introductory experiences on East Coast beaches
• Beach Education programmes in more dynamic West Coast environments
• Coastal Water Safety Programme
• Coastal Nippers school holiday programmes for ongoing participation and skill development

This pathway-based approach helps students progressively build water confidence, risk awareness, beach safety knowledge, and positive connections with New Zealand's coastal environments while supporting safer communities across Aotearoa.

Beyond the programme. Students and families can continue their learning and get involved in the movement through a membership with their local Surf Life Saving club. Clubs provide opportunities for ongoing water safety education, skill development, fitness, leadership, and community involvement through junior and youth programmes. To join a club:

• Choose a local Surf Life Saving club
• Complete the online membership form
• Pay the club membership fee (varies by club)

Memberships help students continue building confidence and safety skills in beach and aquatic environments.

As a not-for-profit organisation, Surf Life Saving relies on user contributions to help deliver our education programmes.

From time to time, limited external funding or grant opportunities become available to support programme delivery. These opportunities are often targeted to specific regions, schools, communities, or funding criteria and cannot be guaranteed.

If your school believes it may benefit from future funding opportunities, please let our team know. We can discuss any funding that is currently available and keep your school in mind should suitable funding become available.