Big Buzz for the Big Dip

The British Gas Big Dip London takes place in Clapham Common from June 18th to July 17th and the British Gas Big Dip Manchester will be held in Spinningfields from July 30^th to August 29^th.

The Uk’s ultimate urban swim festival, which is the brainchild of Olympic medallist Steve Parry, builds on the success of the British Gas ‘Pools 4 Schools’ project held on the south bank of the River Thames in London during 2009, which taught over 2,000 people to swim in just four weeks.

Launching the latest initiative to get more people to enjoy swimming, Steve Parry said:

“The British Gas Big Dip offers swimming for all the family and so much more – in fact all the fun of the beach is being taken into two iconic British cities. There’s a real focus on teaching people to swim and also sessions which will give people more confidence in the water.

“People who come to the attraction will be able to see England’s Volleyball team, exercise and try new activities including giant slides and zorbing pools. There will also be a beach area for non-swimmers with volleyball sessions, yoga, pilates, kids competitions.”

Jodie Kidd and Mark Foster were at the official launch, and with yesterday's heatwave there were over 1,000 visitors throughout the day.

We met the Olympic medalist (and very tall!) Steve Parry at a recent launch event, and his passion and enthusiasm for the scheme was inspiring.  One in five children in the UK leave primary school unable to swim.  Not only is swimming great fun, brilliant exercise and relaxation, but it is also a life skill - drowning is the 4th biggest killer of children under 16.

Confidence in the water is something we can teach our children from a very young age.  It's about getting in the pool and having fun.  Once that is achieved, then children can move on to lessons - whether they are formal classes, or taught by parents.

The Big Dip is a great opportunity to enjoy the water, so come on down!

@The_Big_Dip on Twitter for the latest updates. 
To book your place visit http://www.bigdip.co.uk/

You have the chance to win one of 5 family sets of tickets to the London event.  To enter, please leave a comment below stating why you'd like to attend.  For an additional entry, please tweet the following and leave a separate tweet to say you've done so: "I'm entering @missielizzieb 's competition to win family tickets to @The_Big_Dip You can too here: http://bit.ly/lp2Idl"

The competition will close at 8pm on Sunday 03 July.  The event is on until 17th July in London.  5 winners will be chosen at random to receive a  pair each of standard entry tickets which allow 2 adults and 2 children (under the age of 12) entry to the Big Dip and swimming in the pools on any day. Neither this blog, not British Gas, the sponsors of this competition will be liable in the event of cancellation due to unforeseen circumstances.  Winners must respond within 3 days with contact details in order to claim their prize.

Disclosure: All opinions are my own.  Prizes are supplied by the Big Dip organisers.  I received family tickets and attended a launch event.  No financial reward was given.