Pendle Leisure Trust backs Duncan Goodhew's swimming message

In a BBC news article this week, Olympic swimmer Duncan Goodhew expressed how important it is for children to get back in the water and learn this vital life-saving skill; saying: “Parents should put swimming lessons ‘front and centre of their priorities’ as the country comes out of lockdown.”

And Pendle Leisure Trust is backing the Olympian’s sentiments all the way.

The Trust’s chief executive, Alison Goode, said: “It’s great to see someone so prominent and passionate about swimming stressing how important learning to swim really is.

“We have had a great response from children and parents who returned to our centres for swimming lessons last month as part of Stage 2 of the easing restrictions. We welcomed back lots of children who had been forced to halt their lessons because of the pandemic – as well as lots of new children all eager to learn.”

Duncan Goodhew officially opened Pendle Wavelengths in Nelson when it was first built in 1989. With the plaque he unveiled still prominent in the town centre building today.

The swimming legend’s comments come after the sport's governing body said the lack of lessons during the Covid pandemic meant 240,000 children had missed out on learning how to swim 25ms – with Swim England predicting that more than five million swimming sessions were lost during the pandemic.

Mr Goodhew, who is president of charity Swimathon Foundation, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that it was: "’impossible’ for children to learn to swim without being in the water.

"It is particularly important with the holidays, with young children running round at pools or the seaside who can't swim. It is a pretty frightening experience for the parent, so I think it is really important that parents put this front and centre of their priorities and get children signed up to learn to swim."