Dorset Children and young people making the most of free-swimming sessions.
Over the summer children and young people have been cooling off and having fun in swimming pools across the county, thanks to free swimming sessions offered by Dorset Council.
This initiative was made possible by additional funding that allowed Dorset Council to offer all residents under the age of 16 free swimming from 25th July to the 4th of September in participating leisure centres across the county.
A total of 28,189 swimming sessions were accessed over the school holiday, providing young people with a healthy and enriching activity to enjoy, while remaining affordable to parents.
Cllr Andrew Parry, Dorset Council Portfolio Holder for Children, Education and Early Help said: “It was wonderful to be able to enable families to have extra fun in the water without added pressure on their finances. In a coastal county, the importance of improving water confidence and skills cannot be understated and we are grateful to all the leisure centres who got involved to make this such a success.”
As well as swimming sessions thousands of children and young people took part in Summer in Dorset, a wide and vibrant collection of enriching activities that all include a nutritious meal. Young people who are eligible for benefit-related Free school meals, were able to access all Summer in Dorset free of charge.
A huge thank you must go to the local Leisure Centres who provided their pools and other facilities to so many children. Details of the participating Leisure Centres:
Bridport Leisure Centre – 01308 427464
1610 Dorchester Sports Centre – 01305 858400
Weymouth Swimming Pool – 01305 774373
Osprey Leisure Centre, Portland – 01305 824378
Purbeck Sports Centre, Wareham – 01929 500000
Ferndown Leisure Centre – 01202 877468
Queen Elizabeth Leisure Centre, Wimborne – 01202 888208
Blandford Leisure Centre – 01258 455566
RiversMeet, Gillingham – 01747 834013
Shaftesbury Lido – 01747 853181
If you have any questions regarding the free summer swimming offer or Summer in Dorset, please contact holidayactivities@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk