Yamba Surf
Lifesaving Club
Building Lifesavers Since 1966: The Story of Yamba Nippers
For almost six decades, the Yamba Nippers program has been at the heart of our club — introducing generations of young members to surf safety, lifesaving skills and healthy competition. What began in the 1960s as a small but passionate group has grown into a thriving junior program, supported by dedicated volunteers and families. Today, Nippers remains a vital pathway to senior lifesaving at Yamba SLSC, building confidence, capability and a lifelong connection to the beach.
The Early Years of Yamba Nippers
The Nipper movement at Yamba has been instrumental in teaching the basics of water safety and surf skills to our junior members since 1966. It has played an integral part in providing a pathway to becoming a senior lifesaver at Yamba SLSC.
After forming in 1966 under the Presidency of Ron Curtin, the Nippers group stumbled slightly, only to re-form in 1968 for boys only - girls did not rejoin the group again at Yamba until 1972.
The 1970’s saw the Nippers group gain momentum particularly with the involvement of Bruce and Margaret Muggleton who became actively involved in all aspects of ‘Nippers’ from training to competition and everything in between. This continued for over 10 years. Membership in those times sat around 50-60 regular attendees at Sunday Nippers.
In the late1980s Nippers and Senior clubs went through a process of amalgamation with the formation within SLS of the Board of Junior Activities. The Junior Activities Committee (JAC) then became part of the overall club structure.
Growth, Success and a Thriving Future
It was during the 1990s under the leadership of David Wall, then Chris Douglas, that our nipper numbers really began to increase, reaching around the 200 mark. Parent involvement was very strong, and many nipper parents attained their Bronze Medallion to become active patrolling members of Yamba SLSC.
As the surf skills of our nippers improved, their competition levels also gained strength. Dedicated commitment and training within the ranks produced many Country, State and National champions for Yamba SLSC.
With a succession of dedicated JAC’s over the years, and an ongoing band of co-operative parents, ‘Nippers’ at Yamba SLSC has continued to thrive until the present day.