The Amateur Swimming Association (ASA) has teamed up with the cereal maker, Kellogg's, to address a shortage of qualified swimming coaches in the UK.

A new bursary fund has been announced that will help to fill the nationwide skills gap which, according to ASA, is threatening grassroots swimming. The £90,000 Kellogg's Swim Active Bursary Fund is designed to offer financial support towards the education and training of swimming coaches through the Institute of Sport.

Working in conjunction with the ASA, Scottish Swimming and Swim Wales, Kellogg's will invest £3m into supporting British swimming over the next three years. It follows the development of the Swim Active programme in 2007, designed by the ASA and Kellogg's to increase participation in swimming. Bruce Learner, corporate social responsibility manager for Kellogg's, said: "We're hoping to train around 200 people to address the current country-wide skills gap in swimming teaching and coaching. This should go some way to ensure that more young people and their families have the opportunity to enjoy swimming as part of a healthy, balanced lifestyle."

Workforce development manager for the ASA, Melissa Barlow, said: "The training and education for teachers and coaches is so important so they have the knowledge and skills to provide a positive experience of the sport that in turn will encourage more people to swim regularly."