Swimmers brave sea as Sheringham's New Year's Day Dip returns

The annual fundraising swim has returned for the first time since the pandemic

More than 400 people braved the chilly North Sea for the return of an annual fundraising swim.

The New Year's Day Dip at Sheringham, Norfolk, was held for the first time since the pandemic. It was cancelled last year due to "legal requirements".

The event raised about £2,000 which will be shared with the RNLI and other local charities.

Sheringham and Cromer Round Table chairman Will Moy said he hoped "this will be the first dip of many".

More than 400 people registered to take part with about 1,000 people watching them brave the chilly sea

Many got dressed up, ready to take part

Swimmers - some in fancy dress - took to the wintry sea at 12:30 GMT to better than expected bright, sunny weather conditions, said Mr Moy.

"We had over 400 enthusiastic dippers, over 1,000 in attendance [and] have raised somewhere around £2,000," he added.

Others stuck to their swimsuits

After the event had to be cancelled last year, the involvement of the local Round Table group helped bring about its revival

The swim was revived in 2017 as a fundraiser for the RNLI with about 50 swimmers.

Plans to resume the event last year were cancelled, with organisers saying: "We are just a two-man team with little event experience and have come up against a number of risk assessment and event insurance hurdles."

The Round Table group stepped in and as a result this year's event was able to go ahead.

Half the funds raised will go to the RNLI, while the other half will be share with local charities, say organisers