The coach's position is the worst one on the beach
Think about where an instructor actually stands for a lesson.
Chest deep in the whitewater on the inside, which is the brightest water surface there is. Facing the beach, which means facing whichever way gives them sight of the group rather than whichever way is comfortable. Stationary for long periods, pushing people into waves. Head above water the whole time, so none of the small reduction from immersion applies. And doing it again after lunch, and again tomorrow, for a whole season.
That is a longer, more repeated, more reflective exposure than almost anything else that happens on a coastline, and the person doing it is working rather than surfing, which means they are thinking about the group rather than about themselves.
What the job makes difficult
You cannot leave. The whole of this manual is about not being able to leave, and a coach has it worse than a surfer, because a surfer could theoretically come in and a coach cannot.
You are looking at the water constantly. Which is a glare and eye protection problem, covered in glare and eye protection. It is also a safety issue: if you cannot see the water properly, you cannot supervise it properly.
You are talking. Which means anything on your lips and around your mouth is being worked constantly.
You repeat it. A season of lessons is not one exposure, it is a hundred, at the same time of day, in the same position, on the same beach.
The practical response for anyone doing this professionally is the strongest version of everything in this manual: full cover, retained headwear that includes the neck, a heavy visible format on the face, and eye protection if you can find something workable, because in this job it also helps you do the job.
| The coach | The group | |
|---|---|---|
| Position | Standing in whitewater, facing the beach | Prone on a board, head up |
| Areas affected | Face, ears, neck, hands, whole head | Back of the neck, upper back, arms |
| Duration | Whole lesson, then the next one | One or two hours |
| Repetition | Every day of a season | Once, or a few times on holiday |
| Cover | Under their own control | A hired suit that may fit badly |
| Application | Possible if they make time | Usually none, or done too late |
| Who is thinking about it | Nobody, they are watching the group | Nobody, they are nervous about surfing |
Working framework of this manual. It is not a measurement, it is not drawn from any study, and it carries no numbers we cannot source.
The group has a different problem
Beginners do not burn where surfers burn, because they do different things.
A person in their first lesson spends most of it lying on a board, paddling with their head lifted and looking forward at the instructor or the beach. That posture presents the back of the neck, the upper back and the backs of the arms to the sky continuously, and the back of the neck is the most reliably visible burn on any group at the end of a session.
They are also frequently in a hired wetsuit that fits imperfectly, so the neck may sit lower than it should. They may be on holiday, unacclimatised, at a stronger latitude than home. And they have almost certainly applied nothing, or applied it an hour ago in a car park, or applied it and then put a wetsuit on over it.
What is reasonable for a coach to do about the group
This manual is not going to tell anybody how to run their business or what their duty of care is. Those are questions for the qualification body, the insurer and the relevant water safety guidance, and the RNLI is the source on water safety with groups.
What is squarely practical, and cheap:
Say it before the wetsuits go on. Not after. Application has to happen on dry skin before a suit, and a group that gets told at the water's edge will not do it.
Mention the back of the neck specifically. It is where their exposure will land and nobody thinks about it. Ten seconds.
Allow time for it. The commonest reason it does not happen is that the lesson is running late and this is the first thing dropped.
Let people wear a top. Somebody wanting to keep a rash vest on is doing the right thing, and being told they do not need it is a small thing said often.
Children
This manual is not a source on children's sun protection and will not pretend to be. The NHS publishes guidance for parents on sun safety and children, NICE guidance covers the public health position, and anyone running sessions for children has a qualification body and an insurer whose requirements govern.
The only points made here are the ones that come from the surf environment itself and apply regardless: reapplication is not available once they are in, the back of the neck and the ears are where a lesson's exposure lands, and application has to happen before the wetsuits go on rather than after.
Clubs, competitions and long beach days
The other version of this is a competition or a club day, where people are on a beach from early morning to late afternoon and in the water for a fraction of it.
The exposure there is mostly not in the water. It is waiting, watching, standing about, sitting on a wall, in the strongest part of the day, for hours. Everyone protects for their heat and nobody protects for the six hours either side of it. If you organise these, the useful thing is shade of some kind on the beach, which is the one control this manual otherwise never gets to recommend, because for once it is available.
What to take away
A coach standing in bright whitewater facing the beach, unable to leave, repeating it all season, is in one of the most demanding exposure positions on any coastline, and the job makes it harder to attend to. The strongest version of this manual's advice applies.
The group's exposure lands on the back of the neck and the ears because of the posture a lesson involves. Say it before the wetsuits go on, allow time for it, and take group water safety from the RNLI rather than from here.