FREE SWIMMING IN THANET

Figures released by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport this week show that over 35,000 free swimming sessions have been accessed by local people in Thanet through the Government's Free Swimming Programme since it started in April 2009. With Government funding, Thanet District Council is offering free swimming to both people aged 60 and over and children and young people aged 16 and under.

Cllr. Clive Hart, a regular swimmer and leader of the opposition at TDC said "These figures are very impressive. I'd encourage anyone to swim regularly if they can and to learn if they can't. The more people swim the better they become at it and thankfully for me, it's certainly not about being the fastest. Swimming is an excellent, low impact, form of exercise and incredibly, it increases muscle strength whilst also being a relaxing pastime".

The Free Swimming Programme is a £140 million Government programme designed to increase participation in swimming in England and lead to subsequent health and economic benefits.

IMPORTANT - Free swimming sessions - The total number of free swims for Thanet as part of this scheme was reported as 17,352 - over 60 and 17,664 - under 16. These figures are not a measure of the total number of individual participants taking part in free swimming.

Published by Cllr. Clive Hart - 44 Northdown Road, Margate, Kent, CT9 3DP.

Note: The Free Swimming Programme is a cross government initiative with funding from five government departments - the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), the Department of Health (DH), the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and Communities and Local Government (CLG) - as well as investment and resource from the Amateur Swimming Association (ASA) and Sport England (SE).