Olympic Champion partners with Royal Foundation

Olympic Champion Tom Dean has partnered with The Royal Foundation of The Prince and Princess of Wales.

Over 200 children are now benefiting from learn-to-swim programs in underserved areas, which are part of the partnership. More are due to be rolled out in pools across the United Kingdom in the coming year.

The packages offer 10 to 12 swimming sessions each to around 1,000 young people who would otherwise not have access to swimming lessons. The packages will be delivered by the Tom Dean Swim School alongside selected certified instructors.

Child drowning deaths in the United Kingdom doubled from 20 in 2019/20 to 41 in 2022/23, and almost one in three children currently leave primary education unable to swim.

Tom Dean MBE said, “Every child should have the opportunity to learn to swim and understand water safety. Swimming is a vital life skill that builds resilience, fosters social connection and keeps young people safe when they are in and around water. This partnership with The Royal Foundation is supporting so many young people, up and down the UK, to find a pool near to them and dive in. Let’s get kids swimming, wherever they live.”

Melanie Waters OBE, Executive Director of The Royal Foundation, said, “Over the last year, I’ve been inspired by how much the community has achieved in Birtley, reopening their pool and encouraging so many people to come and swim there. This new partnership between The Royal Foundation and the Tom Dean MBE Swim School is an important next step, as we encourage everyone – parents, teachers and kids – to see the benefits of learning to swim. Huge thanks to Tom Dean and everyone at the Tom Dean Swim School for working with us to bring this project to life.”