Open water 24-hour swim relay raises over £100,000

Participants swam in teams over a 24-hour period

A 24-hour open water swim relay raised more than £120,000 for a swimming charity.

About 500 swimmers took part in the swimming challenge at Shepperton Lake in Surrey to fundraise for Level Water.

The charity provides one-to-one lessons to children with disabilities.

Participants swam from midday on Saturday until midday on Sunday.

The event is in its third year

Some even swam the full 24 hours alone, though teams of up to eight people were invited to take part.

Organisers said there were 92 teams in the event.

Mark Fox, head of events and community at Level Water said: “The money raised today is going to go a long way to providing life-changing swimming lessons to children with disabilities across the UK, giving them the opportunity to learn to swim and fall in love with the water."

He said the organisation had been "blown away by the incredible community at the lake" as the event was held for a third year.

Four further events will be held in June and September in Bristol, Chelmsford, the Cotswolds and Worcester.