Swimming is a life skill, and the project was about more than teaching them to swim. It was about giving people confidence to try new things, open up about their fears and conquer them. We have seen our members’ confidence and independence grow massively over the course of the project and we know that the project has had a huge impact on their lives.
The project ran from January through to July, consisting of weekly sessions with swimming teachers Harley Hicks & Danielle Ballaram in addition to the Swim Dem Crew leaders.
The Swim Dem Swim Challenge, was a collaborative project between Swim Dem Crew and former Blue Peter presenter & swimming world record holder Ayo Akinwolere
The project transformed a group of people who wouldn’t otherwise be swimming into confident and capable swimmers. They then went on to tackle the Great North and Great London Swims respectively.
Some swimmers progressed faster than others. However, all swimmers in the group no longer have a fear of the open water, which has opened up many opportunities such as triathlons.
For us, it’s about creating a legacy and for this reason we will continue to roll out projects of this nature