150th Anniversary of Historic Swim
On Monday 25 August we celebrate the 150th anniversary of the historic swim across the English Channel by Captain Matthew Webb. The local man from Dawley who became a national hero.
Aged 27, Matthew Webb became the first known person to successfully swim the English Channel unaided and achieved the challenge in 21 hours and 45 minutes and the 21-mile crossing actually involved Webb swimming 39 miles due to tidal currents.
Councillor Angela McClements, Telford & Wrekin Council’s Cabinet Member for Leisure, Tourism, Culture & the Arts, said:
“As we recognise and celebrate the 150th anniversary of our famous local hero Captain Matthew Webb and his historic and remarkable swim across the channel, his famous and inspiring words “Nothing great is easy” are remembered. This milestone serves as a reminder that swimming is such an important and vital life-saving skill to have, whilst the benefits of regular swimming on our physical and mental health are significant. We continue to invest in, and enhance, our swimming sites across the Borough to ensure they are delivering great value and providing a range of session options for our residents.”
The importance of swimming as a life skill is recognised by Telford & Wrekin Council through the provision of four swimming pools in the Borough, concessionary pricing for residents including free swimming for residents aged under 25 and the very popular free swimming lessons for under 10s through the 10 by 10 programme. Since its launch in October 2022 more than 1800 children have participated on Telford & Wrekin Council’s 10 by 10 free swimming lesson programme providing essential life-saving swimming skills to youngsters under 10 years old.
Telford & Wrekin Council’s commitment to invest to maintain and improve swimming pool facilities across the Borough is ongoing and includes the major refurbishment of the swimming pool at Wellington Civic and Leisure Centre which is reopening Tuesday 26 August.
A Swim England report on the benefits of swimming highlight that the unique properties of water make swimming perfect for people of all ages to exercise and found evidence that swimmers live longer, that regular swimming helps older people stay mentally and physically fit, and participation in swimming lessons can help children to develop physical, cognitive and social skills quicker.
To celebrate their local hero Great Dawley Town Council have partnered with local author Sarah Griffiths to create a new children’s book honouring the legendary Dawley-born swimmer — and inspire a new generation with his remarkable story. The new book called “Captain Matthew Webb The Great Adventure” celebrates Webb’s ground-breaking achievement.
Captain Matthew Webb will also be celebrated at Telford Community Carnival on Sunday 24 August as part of Telford Balloon Fiesta where a swimming Captain Matthew Webb carnival piece will feature as part of the parade. The Carnival takes place at Telford Town Park at midday.