Olympic swimmer makes a splash with free lessons

Tom Dean met swimming instructors and children at Birtley Community Pool to launch his new free lesson programme

Olympic swimmer Tom Dean has launched a new initiative to get more children in the water to learn how to swim.

The three-time gold medallist visited Birtley Community Pool in Gateshead to kick off the national scheme, which will provide 1,000 free swim packages for children in areas such as Sunderland and Devon.

Dean said an increasing number of children were leaving school unable to swim and the programme was about giving them a valuable "life skill".

"We have a real problem on our hands and something needs to be done," he said.

Dean said nearly one in three children were leaving primary school without knowing how to stay safe in water.

"Every person up and down the country should know how to swim and it's not just so these kids can go on and be Olympic swimmers," he said.

His free swim packages aim to address this issue by teaching swimming fundamentals and water safety to children who would usually not have access to lessons.

Dean last visited the pool in 2024 for its reopening alongside Prince William

The scheme is being run in partnership with The Royal Foundation's Community Impact Programme while the Tom Dean Swim School has selected certified instructors from around the country to deliver the lessons.

The programme was launched by the Olympian at Birtley Community Pool, a year after he visited the centre to mark its reopening.

Gateshead Council closed the baths in 2023 as part of cost-cutting measures but a local group raised £20,000 to secure its future.

Prince William officially opened the pool alongside Dean, fellow Paris 2024 Olympian Adam Peaty and Paralympians Maisie Summers-Newton and Louise Fiddes.