Croydon teenager teaches 780 children to swim for free

Jeremiah Carnegie, a 17-year-old competitive swimmer from Croydon, has initiated a free swimming programme that taught 780 children from Newham to swim. The Newham Future Swimmers programme took place over two weeks at the London Aquatics Centre in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

Programme Details

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The programme was designed to address barriers to accessing swimming, which Carnegie noted as an expensive sport. Primary schools across the London Borough of Newham were invited to participate. In the first week, 320 children who had no prior swimming experience attended daily 30-minute sessions for five days. The second week saw 460 children with some swimming background participate in a similar format. Families requiring essential swimming gear, such as swimsuits, trunks, or goggles, received these items without charge.

Carnegie, who has won multiple medals at the London Aquatics Centre, stated his motivation was to give back to a venue that had been significant in his own swimming career. He observed that the facility was not being fully utilised by the local community. "It was blatantly obvious that quite a lot of the venue wasn't being used to its full capacity by the local community," Carnegie told MyLondon. "There were a lot of clubs training at the pool from all over London, but I felt like a lot of the local community wasn't able to access it."

Partnership and Outcomes

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The initiative was delivered in partnership with Everyone Active, the operator of the London Aquatics Centre, and the Newham and UEL Swimming Club (NUEL). Everyone Active provided the pool space and four swimming teachers who volunteered their time. NUEL contributed four coaches and volunteers to assist with child registration and session guidance. Parents reported positive outcomes, with one, Sarah Cole, noting increased confidence in her sons, Luke and Brooklyn, around water. "If they’re ever in trouble in the water, they’ll have the confidence to get themselves out of it," Cole said. "I’m so happy with how much more confident they’ve become."

Carnegie expressed hope that the children were inspired by training at the Olympic legacy venue. He noted significant positive feedback from parents and anticipates further growth for the programme next year, given the number of children who could not participate this year due to capacity or awareness limitations.