Thirsk swimmers take the plunge after receiving cash boost

Thirsk White Horse Swim Team (TWHST), which consists of 106 swimmers and 12 volunteers, received £5,000 from the annual grant budgets of North Yorkshire Council members Cllr Gareth Dadd and Cllr Dave Whitfield to replace outdated diving blocks at Thirsk and Sowerby Leisure Centre.

The funding has led to the purchase of four new diving blocks, allowing club swimmers of all ages to reach their potential in open galas at local, regional and national levels and train at the same level as their competitors.

Cllr Dadd, who is also North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for finance and resources, said: “Cllr Whitfield and I were pleased to help when approached by volunteers from Thirsk White Horse Swim Team.

"The club, which trains six days a week, has so far achieved great things and we hope the new blocks will allow the users to improve their swimming techniques to a high standard and foster their competitive spirit further.”

A fundraising committee member of TWHST, Claire Ryder, said the new equipment would be of a huge benefit to the club and help ensure its members can compete to the best of their abilities.

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She added: “We are grateful for this generous donation. We regularly fundraise to benefit the club, but more recently our focus has been on updating training equipment.

“We decided to meet with Cllrs Dadd and Whitfield to explain how important it was for the club to have the right equipment for the swimmers to use during training, as well as for home competitions, to enable them to reach their potential.

“Both councillors supported the club with their annual grant budget and allowed us to purchase four much-needed diving blocks, providing all swimmers with the opportunity to train at the same level as their competitors. There’s no stopping us now.”