MORE swimming lessons and riverside lifebelts have been called for to increase safety after the tragic death of Aown Dogar.

Last month 13-year-old Aown died after getting into difficulty in the River Thames near Donnington Bridge. His family believe he had jumped in to save a friend in trouble in the water.

His death came three years after 15-year-old Mohammad Hussain drowned near Donnington Bridge after being dared to go into the water by a friend.

At an Oxford City Council meeting this week, councillor Elise Benjamin led calls for increased safety and questioned why the council had not installed new lifebelts near the bridge.

She said: “Following the tragic drowning of 15-year-old Mohammad Hussain near Donnington Bridge in 2012, former Green Iffley wards councillor David Williams put in several requests to install lifebelts on the Meadow Lane side of the Thames.” She asked if it could be explained why lifebelts had not yet been installed on the Meadow Lane side of the Thames and demanded a review of where lifesaving equipment could be found along Oxford’s riverbanks.

Ms Benjamin added: “The latest tragic drowning of 13-year-old Aown Dogar has once again raised awareness of the lack of lifebelts on some stretches of the Thames.”

Board member for leisure, parks and sport Mike Rowley said vandalism meant lifebelts had to often be replaced, leading to gaps in their availability. He added that Aown Dogar’s death happened at a side channel, where life belts “would not be expected”.

He said that because there were areas without lifebelts, more families should take advantage of free children’s swimming lessons being offered by the city council.

Speaking after the meeting, Mr Rowley said the council would continue to work with the Environment Agency to assess the need for new lifebelts.

He added: “Our lifebelt stations are inspected fortnightly in the summer months and monthly for the rest of the year and any missing lifebelts are replaced immediately.

“We’ll continue to review safety promotion measures with the Environment Agency and the emergency services and consider if there is a need to install additional lifebelts. “I’d like to encourage young people to take advantage of our free swimming sessions and free swimming lessons rather than swimming in open water. “ Weirs Lane resident Jayne Madden, who has lived near the bridge for 57 years, said she would like to see increased safety after witnessing several tragedies in her time there.

The 57-year-old added: “I think it is essential to swim.

“It is difficult to see because there is an undercurrent that runs one way and it also pulls the other way.

“When I was 11-years-old, we used to go into the lashes and swim at the weirs, and one of the kids got in and someone went in to save him.

“I think there needs to be extra safety.

“It needs more signs and more life rings which you can throw in and save someone.”