The Amateur Swimming Association (ASA) has announced that the first wave of five regional coordinators for the Everyday Swim programme have been appointed.

Co-ordinators for Woking, Suffolk, Easington, Telford & Wrekin and the Wirral have been put in place to start delivering programmes with local partners to encourage more people to take up regular swimming.

The first projects will be used as pathfinders for the remainder of the £3m programme, identifying best practice and solutions to commonly faced problems, such as pool access in rural areas and encouraging underrepresented groups such as ethnic minorities and those with disabilities.

Three other pilot areas – Kirklees, Islington and Lewisham – are soon to appoint their coordinators, and the ASA is planning to develop projects in the East Midlands and South West of England.

Everyday Swim ambassador and Olympic gold medallist, Duncan Goodhew, said: "Everyday Swim offers an extremely exciting opportunity for improving the health of the nation.

"Now the challenge for us all, and in particular the Everyday swim co-ordinators, is to find new and innovative ways of encouraging different communities into the pool for a good regular swim."

The co-ordinators are: Woking – James Barter; Suffolk – Helen Graupp-Fisher; Wirral – Karen James; Easington – Duane Newton; Telford & Wrekin – Matt Shields.

Photograph courtesy of www.actionplus.co.uk